In the last 10 editions of the Rome Masters, only two players, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic have emerged victorious in the competition with the Spaniard winning it seven times and the Serbian three times.
Hence, Djokovic will be looking for his fourth Rome Masters as he faces the second seed Roger Federer in the 2015 edition. Federer's best in the competition has been a runners-up finish in 2003, 2006 and 2013.
Federer brushed aside his fellow countrymen, Stan Wawrinka, in the semi-finals of the competition in straight sets with the score reading, 6-4 and 6-2. Federer started the match in a quick note and such performance will be required against the world number one during the finals as well.
Talking about his semi-finals encounter with Wawrinka, he felt his opponent broke down in the second set.
"Stan played well in the first set," ATP official website quoted Federer as saying.
"In the second set he had a sort of breakdown. He wasn't serving his best. I was definitely able to take advantage of it. He's got a good opportunity next week (in Geneva). He's in the right direction and obviously the win against Rafa was massive for him and his confidence.
"His game is there. I was very happy how I played. I was able to impose my game. I had a sort of breakdown too but I'll try not to let it happen tomorrow," he added.
The Swiss ace needs to be on top of his game to notch his first Rome Masters against a player, who has already won his last three tournaments, Indian Wells Masters, Miami Masters and Monte Carlo Masters. Apart from this, he also won the 2015 Australian Open earlier in the year.
So, the Serbian , who defeated David Ferrer in straight sets in the final four of the competition, will be a confident player when he takes on the Swiss.
Federer has also had a good season so far with a victory over the Serbian in the finals of the Dubai Open as well.
Such record just calls for an entertaining contest between the two modern greats of the game. Federer might not be a master on clay, but the Swiss has not dropped a single set in the competition, as a result of which the player must be brimming with confidence.
Even his words have an air of confidence about himself.
"I feel like I have a chance to play well for sure," said Federer.
"Novak is not Rafa on clay, so it's a different situation. I've done fairly well in the past against him. We played here twice before and I lost both times so it's up to me to put in a good performance."
Where to Watch Live
Novak Djokovic is expected to play Kei Nishikori at 4pm local time (7:30pm IST, 10am ET, 3pm BST) with live TV coverage in India on Star Sports 1.
Viewers in the US can watch it on Tennis Channe.
The UK viewers can watch it onSky Sports 5 and Sky Sports 5 HD.
Viewers around the world, including India, can watch it live on tennistv.
