Novak Djokovic hit an impressive return winner on match point against Roger Federer in the 2011 US Open semi-final, and it made all the difference.
That semifinal was a really crazy one between Djokovic and Federer because Federer was on the verge of winning the match. He took the first two sets, but Djokovic battled back to force a decider. This was not the only big Grand Slam match Federer was on the verge of winning against Djokovic.
It can come down to a few points, which happened in both that US Open final and the Wimbledon final years later. Federer could have been on 22 Grand Slams right now if they went differently, but he's not; he's on 20, and Djokovic is on 24 as of recently.
In any case, the Serbian talked about that match in a recent feature he did with ESPN+ and John McEnroe explaining how he predicted where Federer would serve, essentially the tipping point in the match. It happened at 5-3 40-15, and the final set ended 5-7.
I anticipated he was going to serve wide and I don't know why and this is probably the first time I'm going to say this, but I felt that was his go-to serve against me in the important moments.
He was right, Federer did serve wide, but he didn't place it that well. The serve landed closer to Djokovic, and he ripped a forehand winner that shifted the momentum completely. He easily outplayed Nadal in the final, so in a sense, that forehand proved crucial to win the tournament.
Okay if he serves here I'm going to smack it. I'm going to be in a good position and I did. You know how it is, one or two shots can really shift the whole momentum.
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