Borna Coric shocked defending champion Roger Federer 6-4 6-4 to reach his maiden masters 1000 final in Shanghai.
The Croatian pulled off an unbelievable display of power as he dismissed Roger Federer in straight sets to reach his first ever masters 1000 final.
The defending champion failed to create a single break point as Coric provided the Chinese crowd with a serving masterclass of his own.
Next up for Coric is new world number two Novak Djokovic, who is on a 17 match winning streak and looking for his fourth title this season.
A break in the opening game of each set was enough for Coric as he cruised past a poor Federer, who kept missing on his forehand side, to seal the biggest victory of his career.
The Croatian’s serving stats were very impressive throughout the contest as he won 86% of points on his first serve to keep his advantage. His returning was also key as he continued to create break point opportunities, seven in total, as Federer continued to look vulnerable.
The world number 19’s power was too much throughout the match as he celebrated victory after 1 hour and 14 minutes to seal his place in the Shanghai final.
Defending Champion out!@borna_coric is through to his first Masters 1000 final, defeating Roger Federer with a near flawless performance 6-4 6-4.#RolexSHMasters pic.twitter.com/7oE2zCD1Ne
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) October 13, 2018
The win also means that Coric’s faint hopes of qualifying for the ATP World Tour finals are alive as a win tomorrow would see him move to 2,700 points.
After the match Federer congratulated Coric after confessing that he was the better player, “I thought he was better. I think he had more punch on the ball. He served better. I think that’s it,” claimed Federer.
“The rest, he had more chances than I had. I got off to a bad start in both sets. That combination is plenty here in Shanghai with [the] fast conditions.”
The 20 time grand slam champion will now play in Basel next as he continues to build momentum towards the ATP World Tour Finals while Coric plays Djokovic in the biggest match of his career tomorrow.
