Roger Federer begins his 62nd consecutive Grand Slam tournament at the French Open on Sunday against a man who once almost condemned him to his worst loss at a major.

Top seed and defending champion Novak Djokovic will face second seed Roger Federer in Sunday's Italian Open final after both claimed straight sets wins.

It was another epic struggle in a long list of hardcourt battles between the two top players in the world, who have met 38 times with Swiss great Federer still holding a slight 20-18 edge.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic took another step towards defending his Indian Wells title with a hard-fought 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) win over American John Isner.