Djokovic–Federer rivalry

The Djokovic–Federer rivalry is a tennis rivalry between two professional tennis players, Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer. They have faced each other 45 times with Djokovic leading 23–22. This includes a record 15 Grand Slam matches, four of which were finals, plus a record ten semifinals. Both players have beaten the other in each of the four Grand Slam tournaments.

A notable aspect of the rivalry is their ability to beat each other on any given day, including Grand Slam play, making it one of the most competitive and evenly matched rivalries in the Open Era. To date Federer is the only man to have beaten Djokovic in all four majors, and likewise Djokovic is the only man to have beaten Federer in all four majors. Both men accomplished this after having beaten each other at Wimbledon. Both players are generally considered to be the two greatest hard court players in the open era.

Their matches showcase an unpredictable display of shot-making. In addition, neither man has beaten the other more than four times in a row, as the changes of playing surface that occur throughout the year often produce little effect on determining the winner of their matches. In most other rivalries the type of playing surface has a profound effect on the outcome of matches, but in this rivalry, the type of surface in most cases does not give any considerable advantage to one player over the other.

In theory, Federer gains a marginally small advantage on faster surfaces, as Djokovic's retrieval ability is nullified somewhat, but so far their match results have been relatively even across hard, clay, and grass courts respectively. As such, they have contested many acclaimed matches over the years. Their 2010 US Open, 2011 US Open and 2011 French Open semifinals along with the 2014 Wimbledon final are classified among the most notable matches in their rivalry.

Djokovic and Federer have played four times at the Australian Open, with Djokovic winning three times and Federer winning once. The first time they met at a major was in the fourth round of the 2007 Australian Open, where Federer won in straight sets. Federer went on to win without losing a set in the tournament to claim his tenth Grand Slam title. The next year, they met in a rematch at the 2008 Australian Open semifinals, where Djokovic won in straight sets to reach his second Grand Slam final. It was the first time in nearly four years that someone defeated Federer in straight sets at a Grand Slam. Djokovic proceeded to win his first career major over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final.

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