• US Open - Men's Draw

Djokovic stuns Federer to set up Nadal showdown

Novak Djokovic has lost to Roger Federer in the last three US Opens © Getty Images

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Novak Djokovic dug deep to deny Roger Federer a dream US Open final showdown against world No. 1 Rafael Nadal on Sunday.

Djokovic showed great heart as he saved two match points before triumphing 5-7 6-1 5-7 6-2 7-5 in a topsy-turvy five-setter on Center Court in New York.

In a match fraught with errors but a nonetheless highly entertaining encounter, Federer twice took the lead, only for Djokovic to draw level and force the match to a deciding set.

The world No. 3 will hope not to be feeling the effects of a gruelling five-setter lasting over three-and-a-half hours when he takes on Nadal in Sunday's final, after the top seed powered past Mikhail Youzhny in straight sets to reach his first US Open final.

In an attritional opening set, it was Federer who claimed the sole break, but it took him until the final game to find a way past an inspired Djokovic. The Serb has struggled with his serve this season, but it was Federer's serve that looked the more shaky, failing to execute more than half of his first serves.

That said, the world No. 2 still fired 12 aces, but Djokovic exploited an uncharacteristic number of errors in Federer's game and soon found himself back in the encounter. While many have questioned Djokovic's mental toughness, the third seed might have been expected to crumble after losing the opening set after making just nine unforced errors, but he responded admirably.

Djokovic, who had no intention of allowing Federer an easy ride, responded immediately winning three games without reply. He grabbed another break to seal the second set comfortably after Federer netted a backhand return into the net.

In an almost identical fashion to the opening set, it was Federer who took the lead once more, and once again he needed to wait until the final game of the set to grab the all-important break to avoid a tie-break, snatching three set points before forcing Djokovic to make an error with a return that sailed long.

But Djokovic refused to give in and took the match to a deciding set after snatching a break in the third game of the fourth set. After carving out a break point with a well-taken smash at the net, he fired a forehand into the open court to take a break.

After Djokovic missed his chance to break in an epic seventh game, Federer was one point away from victory when he forged two match points at 5-4, but Djokovic bravely held on before breaking in the next game.

Djokovic has come up short against Federer in the last three years at Flushing Meadows - in the final in 2007, and at the semi-final stage in the last two years, but he made no mistake at the fourth attempt, as Federer sent his return wide to seal a memorable victory for the 2008 Australian Open champion.

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