Watch: Federer Sensed Defeat Coming

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Watch: Federer Sensed Defeat Coming

Roger Federer knew he was in trouble before he stepped on court to face Juan Martin del Potro.

In a pulsating rematch of the 2009 US Open final, del Potro knocked the 19-time Grand Slam champion out of the US Open in a stirring quarterfinal conquest.

Watch: Del Potro Puts Kibosh on Federer-Nadal Semifinal

Crediting del Potro for outplaying him, Federer attributed the defeat to three primary reasons: He wasn’t strong enough physically, mentally or executing his game.

“It was one of those matches where if I ran into a good guy, I was going to lose, I felt,” Federer said. “I don't want to say I was in negative mindset, but I knew going in that I'm not in a safe place. Might have depended too much on my opponent, and I don't like that feeling. I had it, you know, throughout the tournament, and I just felt that way every single match I went into.

"I didn't have that feeling at Wimbledon or at the Australian Open, and that's why rightfully so I'm out of this tournament, because I wasn't good enough, in my mind, in my body, and in my game to overcome these three pillars. If you're missing all three, it's going to be tough."

The Grand Slam king candidly said some of his errors, particularly a bungled volley that would have given him a break point in the last game "sucked."

"I'm okay with it, and I tried until the very end," Federer said. "And smashing certain stuff in the net that I normally wouldn't, smashing forehand volleys into the back fence, I mean, that stuff sucked. You know, honestly, it was terrible. Juan Martin did well. He served well, had some big shots when he needed to. That was the part, that he did so much better tonight, and that's why he deserves to win."

Photo credit: US Open Facebook

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