FIVE days after flirting with the most embarrassing defeat of his reign as world No 1 against an obscure Spaniard, Roger Federer today faces another episode in his rivalry with perhaps the greatest clay-court champion in history.

Rafael Nadal, who has been in his element on the red dust of Monte Carlo this past week, faces Federer in the final for the third year in succession. Nadal will be going for his fourth successive title at Europe’s opening ATP Masters Series event.

The 21-year-old from Majorca leads 8-6 in all meetings against Federer; more pertinently, he is 6-1 ahead in their matches on clay.

Nadal’s victims on the way to the final make impressive reading: Mario Ancic, twice champion Juan Carlos Ferrero, David Ferrer and fourth-seeded Nikolay Davydenko. In yesterday’s semi-final Davydenko joined the collection of straight-sets victims, falling 6-3 6-2.

The day began with high expectations. For the first time since rankings began 35 years ago, the world’s leading four players contested the Monte Carlo semi-finals. But it proved a disappointing afternoon.

Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic again succumbed to ill-health on court when he was forced to retire against Federer when trailing 6-3 3-2.

The problem is a recurring one for Djokovic, who has been forced to quit against each of his peers within the game’s leading quartet. At Wimbledon last year he pulled out after winning the first set of the semi-final against Nadal. Earlier this season he could not finish his match against Davydenko as Russia overcame Serbia in the Davis Cup.

Djokovic had already dispensed with Andy Murray and Sam Querrey last week, but he complained of feeling nauseous at the end of the first set, and once his opponent had established a firm lead, the Serb insisted that dizziness made it impossible to continue.

“I didn’t feel good for the past three days and have been waking up with a sore throat,” said Djokovic, who underwent surgery for sinus problems late last year. “Obviously when you’re playing against the No 1 player of the world, you play longer points, and I couldn’t get enough energy back after each one. I just decided not to risk anything.”

Nadal was probably expecting more of a threat from Davydenko than he got. When the pair last met in the final of the Masters Series event on the cement of Miami three weeks ago, the Russian prevailed impressively. Yet probably a more relevant encounter was last year’s semi-final in Rome. On that occasion nerves were taut, but Davydenko showed he was capable of not just standing toe-to-toe with a clay-court legend, but shafting swords of doubt into the usually indomitable Nadal game.

Sadly, this latest confrontation only rarely required Nadal to move close to his potential levels of genius. However, he admitted later: “I played the complete clay-court match and was very aggressive.”

A break in the third game gifted the Spaniard the first set. Davydenko was more competitive in the second, with three successive breaks of serve spicing things up before Nadal warded off three points to avoid a fourth and seal the win in an hour and 40 minutes.

Since first appearing at this event five years ago, he has dropped only four sets, a record that distinguishes him as the most regal player to have graced the courts of the principality.

Final, today, Sky Sports Xtra, 2pm