Wimbledon, England
Defending champion Novak Djokovic and six-time winner Roger Federer have arranged a blockbuster semifinal encounter after disposing of separate quarterfinal round rivals at Wimbledon.
World No. 1 Djokovic dismissed Florian Mayer of Germany, 6-4, 6-1, 6-4 in one hour and 45 minutes while Federer cruised past No. 26 seed Mikhail Youzhny of Russia, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2.
Federer leads Djokovic, 14-12, in their head-to-head record but the Serbian has won the last three matches and this is first time they will face off in grass.
"It is interesting that this is our first grass court match. I'm looking forward to it. It's been a good tournament so far for me. I'm happy [that] I'm feeling good again. It gives me confidence going into a big match against Novak," said Federer, who is 64-7 at the All England Club.
The former No. 1 Federer can reclaim the top spot in the standings if he wins his 17th major championship. If he does lift the trophy Sunday, then he will match record-holder Pete Sampras for the total number of weeks (286) as the World No. 1.
"It is a challenge when you play Roger and Rafa or any of the top players," said Djokovic. "Roger has been on the top of the men's game for so long. This is where he won six titles. He definitely wants to prove himself and to everybody else that he can win it once again."
"Today he won incredibly fast, in straight sets, so we'll see. I'm playing well, I believe. We both have to play at our best in order to get a win. I really have nothing to lose. I'm going to try to win," added Djokovic, who won the title last year after defeating Rafael Nadal.
Meanwhile, Andy Murray defeated world No. 5 David Ferrer, 6-7(5), 7-6(6), 6-4, 7-6(4) victory, to seal a semifinal date withFrance's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who overcame Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany in four sets, 7-6(5), 4-6, 7-6(3), 6-2 .
Murray is bidding to become the first British since Fred Perry in 1936 to reach the Wimbledon final. His bid was derailed twice after losing to Andy Roddick in 2009 and Nadal in 2010-2011.
Murray takes a 5-1 lead into his clash with the No. 6-ranked Tsonga, including victory in their two previous grass-court meetings. He beat the Frenchman in the 2011 Queen's Club final and in the Wimbledon quarter-finals a year earlier.
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