Roger Federer vs Novak Djokovic :
'Novak Djokovic is the only one who can break Roger Federer's Majors record
Serbian going for back-to-back Cincy titles
All but one of the top eight seeds at the Western & Southern Open didn't make the quarter-finals in Cincinnati. But top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic remains.
The Serbian won his eighth straight match in Cincinnati and improved to 3-0 against former No. 10 Pablo Carreno Busta on Thursday, advancing 6-3, 6-4 to make the last eight at the ATP Masters 1000 event.
"I'm very pleased with the performance today because I played against a very great, quality player tonight. It's a straight-sets win but probably the score doesn't indicate how tough it was on the court," Djokovic said. "Overall, [it was] a really, really good match."
Djokovic broke to love in the sixth game of the opener. Carreno Busta had four break points in the second set, but Djokovic saved them all and gained his vital break during the third game, a 13-point affair.
The 32-year-old will next meet Frenchman Lucas Pouille in a rematch of their Australian Open semi-final in January, which was a straight-sets win for Djokovic. Pouille beat eighth seed Karen Khachanov of Russia 6-7(3), 6-4, 6-2 to make his third quarter-final – and first at the Masters 1000 level – of the season. It is Pouille's third Masters 1000 quarter-final and first since 2017 Monte-Carlo.
"It's been a while... I'm just very happy to be in the form I am right now, to be in the quarter-finals," Pouille said.
The Frenchman started the year with his best Grand Slam result, but has struggled with consistency since Melbourne. He is 15-15 on the season.
rd Krajicek believes that Novak Djokovic has more chances than Rafael Nadal to break Roger Federer's 20 Grand Slam titles record. Speaking to Le Matin, the 1996 Wimbledon winner said: "I always thought Roger would end up holding the record.
The only one that can break it is Novak. Nadal is closer to Federer but when did he last win a Grand Slam on a hard court? I do not think he can win in Australia or New York again. He needs to win in French Open and Wimbledon, and if he does not do it in London, he needs to triumph twice in Paris to catch Federer."
Mark Philippoussis added: "It will really be an unbelievable battle. Can Federer win one or two more Majors? Why not? Can Rafa take some around? I can see him winning the French Open one or two more times. But if Djokovic stays healthy and on this dynamic, I can see him winning at least two Majors per season in the next years (laughter).
Who thought about that when Pete Sampras reached the No. 14?" The former world No. 7 WTA player Barbara Schett criticized today's tennis: "Compared to back in the day, players are more physical and they hit harder.
But variety of game totally lacks. There is too much pressure from families. A lot of money is around, there is no patience to get results. Good coaches lacks. They cost too much and the game is boring."
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