Federer to face Djokovic in US Open final

NEW YORK, Sep 9 (Reuters) Top seed Roger Federer remained on course for his fourth consecutive US Open title by beating combative Russian Nikolay Davydenko 7-5 6-1 7-5 in the semi-finals on Saturday.

In today's final, the Swiss maestro will face Novak Djokovic, who became the first Serbian man to reach a grand slam final when he defeated Spain's David Ferrer 6-4 6-4 6-3.

Federer said Djokovic has done an ''incredible job'' this year climbing up the rankings to his current spot at number three.

''I can only be impressed by his performances because at this young age I never had results like this,'' Federer said of the 20-year-old Djokovic. ''First grand slam final, obviously it's a big occasion for him.'' Federer committed an uncharacteristic 25 unforced errors against Davydenko and had his serve broken five times.

But the 26-year-old Russian was broken nine times and won only 32 percent of his second serves while losing to the Swiss for the 10th time in a row.

''The wind definitely played a factor today,'' said Federer.

''It was much easier to hold serve from the one end, obviously serving with the wind.

''We had to adjust our games and maybe not chase the lines so much, play more safe.'' Fourth-seeded Davydenko broke Federer's serve in the first game of the match and led 3-1 before the world number one recovered to take the set in steamy Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Davydenko had two set points in the third set but Federer, bidding for his 12th grand slam title, fought back to secure the victory in two hours, 21 minutes yesterday.

Federer, 26, holds a 4-1 career record over Djokovic, but lost to the talented Serb in their last meeting, a three-set match last month in the Masters Series in Montreal.

''I think I'm ready and I need to be ready,'' Djokovic said yesterday of today's final. ''I need to believe in myself, because otherwise I wouldn't get the positive outcome.

''I don't want to go out tomorrow and try to do my best or try to perform well. No, I'll go tomorrow to try to win.'' Djokovic trailed 4-1 in the opening set against Ferrer but recovered with service breaks in the seventh and ninth games to win the opening frame and set the tone for the match.

''I started really nervous,'' Djokovic said. ''I've played a lot of difficult matches, (spent) a lot of hours on the court these two weeks so I didn't have a lot of energy.

Djokovic served and volleyed well, winning 18 out of 22 points at the net.

''It was very important for me to serve well in the important moments, which I did,'' said Djokovic. ''It was a relief for me that I won in the straight sets. If I would lose that third set, who knows what would happen.'' REUTERS BJR KP1029