Roger Federer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga clash for the second time this week as the 2011 ATP World Tour Finals comes to a climax.
The tournament opened with Federer versus Tsonga and fittingly, it closes with Federer versus Tsonga. Both players have peaked over the past month and they'll be looking to provide another memorable season with a fitting finale.
Federer has held all the aces in their past few meetings, winning easily in the quarters of the US Open and again in the Paris Masters final. Tsonga has consistently bemoaned his slow starts against the Swiss and it cost him again in the round-robin stages here. Federer blitzed through the opening set in barely 20 minutes before letting his opponent right back into it with a big concentration lapse and it was anyone's match before Tsonga threw in a loose service game at a crucial point in the third set.
However Federer has not be quite so impressive after his demolition on Rafa Nadal on Tuesday and if he can get his big serve working, Tsonga will feel he has a chance. He's been mixing up his game impressively over the past few matches, throwing in a few dropshots here and there and following his booming shots into the net and as he showed at Wimbledon, he has what it takes to unsettle Federer.
Federer is such a favourite here in London and in his 100th career final he will have the crowd firmly on his side as he looks to make history by winning a record sixth ATP World Tour Finals title. A win would also see him overtake childhood idol Stefan Edberg at no 6 in the list of overall match wins in the Open Era.
Prediction: Federer to produce the goods and deliver a straight sets masterclass.
