MONTE CARLO, Monaco, Apr 20 (AFP): Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka eased into the Monte Carlo Masters final Saturday, setting up the first all-Swiss title showdown in 14 years.
Federer, who has never won the trophy in the principality, beat Novak Djokovic 7-5, 6-2 as the defending champion and world number two struggled with a right wrist injury which limited his serving to the 150kph range.
Wawrinka, the Australian Open champion, saw off David Ferrer 6-1, 7-6 (7/3), a day after the Spaniard stunned eight-time champion compatriot Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals.
Federer featured in the last all-Swiss final when he lost to Marc Rosset in the 2000 Marseille decider, back in the days when the 17-time Grand Slam title winner was still a raw teenager.
Federer, a loser in three Monte Carlo finals to Nadal, will be making his first title bid in the tournament since 2008.
"It comes as a bit of a surprise to be in the finals, especially the first one on clay," said Federer. "But, of course, I'll take it.
"I've put in the performance to be there, gave myself the opportunity this week. So I'm very happy with my play."
Djokovic's loss ended a 13-match win streak and a run of 23 in a row at the Masters level.
"It's just a match to forget for me," said the Serb who is unsure when he will play again.
"It's unfortunate that when you're playing at this level against Roger, in a big tournament, that you are not able to play your game because something else is taking away all your energy and effort.
"This injury that has been present for last 10 days, and I tried not to think or talk about it, I did everything I could really, I was on the medications every day, I was doing different therapies, injections.
"But at the end of the day, the end of the tournament, the semi-finals are a good result. But I'm disappointed that I could not play as well as I could have."
Federer, Wawrinka into all-Swiss Monte Carlo final
FE Team | Published: April 21, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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