Breaking It Down: Djokovic Vs. Federer There is an intense pressure that world number one Novak Djokovic brings to a match that you just can't find on a stat sheet - or can you? Djokovic defeated Roger Federer 6-4 7-5 6-3 in cool, blustery conditions in the Roland Garros semi-finals Friday, breaking Federer seven times to advance to Sunday's final against Rafael Nadal. The quality of the match did not live up to the hype of last year's epic semifinal, which Federer won in four sets, snapping Djokovic's 41-match win streak. The two main reasons for Djokovic's straight sets victory this year were the weather conditions and the constant pressure of his suffocating game. First, the weather was colder and windier than last year. This was a definite advantage for Djokovic as it made it tougher for Federer to force errors and hit the number of winners needed to beat his more consistent opponent. Second, it was the mental and emotional pressure that Djokovic brings to every point where he is simply the best in the world at turning a defensive situation into an offensive opportunity in the blink of an eye. Djokovic's pressure can be felt through the momentum of the match and also by how many errors his opponent makes chasing a more aggressive yet higher-risk game plan required to beat him. The weather and the pressure brought Federer's two main weapons, his serve and forehand, to their knees on Friday. Federer is number one in the world this year winning points on his second serve at 61 percent, but he was only able to win 45 percent (17/38) Friday. That's never going to get the job done against the world's best returner. Djokovic's pressure forced a domino effect on Federer's tennis, taking him out of his preferred game style and forcing him into lower-percentage patterns that ultimately brought about his demise. On Friday Federer had to chase free points and he was rewarded with nine aces and 12 return errors (10 backhand / two forehand). But being so aggressive in the wind ultimately dropped his first-serve percentage to 56 percent (Djokovic was 73 percent), which in turn provided way too much exposure to his second serve, which in turn gave Djokovic extra looks at second serves to feast on. The pressure slowly built and contributed to Federer losing a number of service games. Federer served 15 service games and won 8 and amazingly lost 7. Once Federer's serve came under fire, he tried to cover for it by being more aggressive with his forehand, but this was just playing straight into Djokovic's master plan. Federer relies heavily on his forehand to control the back of the court and force errors, but it turned into a liability in this match with 11 winners and 32 errors. In the 2012 Indian Wells final, where Federer defeated John Isner 7-6 (7), 6-3 also in windy conditions, Federer hit 14 winners and 14 unforced errors. Djokovic's pressure simply does not allow those kind of numbers to happen. Federer was first to break serve in the match at 2-2 in the first set, but was broken back immediately by Djokovic in the next game when Federer committed four forehand errors - including one at 30-15 that bounced before the net. Federer was again broken in the first set when he again committed another four forehand errors at 4-5 to lose the first set. Federer was dealing with a double-edged sword - go for too little and he won't beat Djokovic and go for too much and he will surely lose as well. Add in the stormy conditions that automatically make hitting winners tougher and Federer was backed into a corner for the entire contest. In the second set Federer broke Djokovic three times to take the lead 3-0, 4-2 and he also served for the second set at 5-4, but he remarkably lost serve four times in that set to lose it 7-5. Probably not since under 14"s has Federer lost serve four times in one set. It was the serve and the forehand once again that let Federer down in the second set. When Federer lost serve at 3-0, it was his forehand that sailed long over the baseline on break point. When Federer lost serve at 4-3 it was his forehand that found the net on break point. When Djokovic broke Federer to get back on serve at 5-5, it was Federer's forehand again that sailed long. It was also another Federer forehand error that flew over the baseline to lose set point at 5-6 as well. Djokovic's ability to turn an opponent's strength against himself is a subtle yet deadly weapon that does not receive the attention it deserves. Djokovic mainly applies pressure through consistency, making one more ball with outstanding defense that makes his opponents feel he can cover each half of the court with just two steps. The pressure of his court position, especially off the backhand wing up around the baseline does not give his opponents the option of pushing him back to a defensive position. Djokovic's pressure can definitely be found in the increased number of Federer's missed serves and forehand errors in this match. Pressure may not be something that you can touch but it's a force that can make a serve go wide or a forehand fly long and turn a strength into a weakness without you even knowing it.