So the last person to beat Novak Djokovic just became the last person to beat Novak Djokovic.  In a surprising turn of events, Federer took the first set, 7-6 and the second set, 6-3.

He had numerous break opportunities numbering over 20, but only converted a handful.  Djokovic then cleaned up his game and took the third set.

In the fourth set, the two played evenly, until Djokovic broke in the middle of the fourth set.  Federer then played a solid game to break back.  Federer escaped being broken again and the match went into tiebreak.  In it, Federer relied on his huge serve and fading daylight to get a mini-break and win the match 7-5 in the tiebreak.

Federer’s strategy in the French usually gets more conservative.  He hits more balls.  He plays more shots up the middle.  But today, several factors helped Federer win.  First, he was hitting his backhand pretty well getting back shot after shot.  Second, he was moving pretty well.  Third, he served well, both first and second serve.

Can Federer do the unimaginable?  Can he win the French over Rafael Nadal?  Federer knew that to regain greatness he would have to do that, to beat Djokovic and Nadal.  Djokovic, despite his winning streak, seemed the one most likely to fall only if Federer had achieved the task more recently.

What could he possibly have in store for Nadal who ought to feel more comfortably playing Federer than anyone else?

We’ll find out Sunday for the first Rafa-Roger Slam final since the 2009 Australian Open won by Rafael Nadal in five sets.  The last time they met in the French final was 2008 and Rafa crushed Federer in that final.   Federer knows his chances for Slams aren’t great, but this would be something that Federer desperately wants, a French title over Nadal.