In his 52nd Masters 1000 semi-final, Federer will face two-time defending champion Novak Djokovic, who defeated ATP World Tour Finals hopeful David Ferrer earlier on Friday to win his 29th straight match on Chinese soil.
Federer, who will overtake Rafael Nadal as World No. 2 in the ATP Rankings on Monday, hit 11 aces and 34 winners in the 69-minute match.
"I thought I played very well against Bautista Agut, but maybe tonight was a bit better,” said Federer. "Especially once I got in the lead, it's nice to have those great 10, 15 minutes where you can stretch it, really. That's what I was able to do. So this probably was my best match so far."
Federer and Djokovic have met on 35 occasions, with the 17-time Grand Slam champion leading their ATP Head2Head series 18-17. Djokovic beat Federer in their last hard-court meeting in March in the final at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells.
“Roger is one of the best players ever in the game,” said Djokovic. “There is no clear favourite. I think every time we play against each other, it's a thriller. It's really a big challenge for both of us. We need to bring our ‘A’ game in order to win.”
"I think we always play tough against each other," said Federer about Djokovic. "I think we're both in good shape right now. We both enjoy playing here in Shanghai.
“He's playing a great season again. I'll give it the best shot I have. I think I have a good game at the moment. It is my first tournament back after vacation, so I really hope I can come up with some good shotmaking and solid play because that's what it's going to require against him. There are not that many secrets out there. We've played each other too many times at this point."
Date: 10th October 2014, Source: ATP
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