ATP Finals: Goffin completes semifinal line-up

David Goffin has earned a shot at Roger Federer after completing the semifinal line-up at the ATP World Tour Finals with a storming straight-sets win over Dominic Thiem.

The Belgian Davis Cup star rebounded from a 6-0 6-2 loss to Grigor Dimitrov on Wednesday to finish second in his four-man group with a 6-4 6-1 rout of the French Open semifinalist.

Later on Friday, Dimitrov continued his impressive tournament with an ominous 6-1 6-1 win over Pablo Carreno Busta.

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The 26-year-old Bulgarian has lost just four games in his past two matches as he warms up for his semi-final against world No.9 Sock.

Making his debut at the season-ending round-robin event, Goffin says his taxing first-up win over world No.1 Rafael Nadal left him physically spent against Dimitrov.

“So I was not ready for that match but I took a good rest yesterday, had a good practice, and I was ready for today,” he said.

“So I hope I can do the same in the semifinals. I played Roger so many times and it’s always a tough match.

“It’s so nice to play a semifinal against him. I have nothing to lose. He’s playing so well but I will try to raise my level to try to win against him.”

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After topping his group unbeaten, only three first-time qualifiers at the year-ending showpiece stand in Federer’s way of a record seventh title – Goffin, Dimitrov and American Jack Sock.

Goffin has lost all six previous encounters with Federer and knows he’ll have his work cut out against the Swiss superstar, especially on an indoor hard court at London’s O2 Arena.

“There is no wind. It’s tough to play higher, to find the loop when you play here on this kind of surface. It’s not easy. It’s perfect for Roger,” he said.

“I’ve never found a key to beat Roger. Honestly, I don’t know what to do tomorrow. But I’m going to try something, something different, something that I’ve never done in the past.”

The world No.8’s confidence has improved after backing up his victory over Nadal with an equally stylish performance.

After mustering only two games against Dimitrov, Goffin looked headed for another thrashing when trailing 3-0 on Friday.

But this time he fought back, snaring 12 out of the next 14 games to prevail after just 71 minutes.

At one stage Goffin won an astonishing 15 points in a row during the opening set.

Federer and Goffin will clash in Saturday’s first semifinal, with the victor to face either Dimitrov or Sock for the season-ending crown on Sunday night.

Federer owns a collective 15-0 win-loss record against the three other semifinalists in London.