Roger Federer of Switzerland leaves the court after being defeated by Novak Djokovic of Serbia in their semi-final match at the Paris Masters men's singles tennis tournament at the Palais Omnisports of Bercy in Paris, November 2, 2013.[Photo/Agencies]

Ibrahimovic on court

Nadal said he was not at the level required to beat Ferrer.

"I need to move quicker. I was slow. I felt like I did not move - I always was a little bit late on the ball," he said.

"Against a player like David, who's quick and plays inside the court and puts pressure on you all the time, you are dead. It was like this."

With Paris St Germain striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic watching, power had also made the difference earlier on Saturday as 2009 champion Djokovic defeated Federer despite struggling to control the brilliant Swiss early on.

"The key was just to hang in there and stay with him. I knew that he was going to be very aggressive from the start coming to the net. He used his opportunities really well," Djokovic said.

"Then, you know, I tried to decrease the number of unforced errors and step in when needed. I did pretty well in the second and the third."

While the crowd had loudly supported Federer throughout, Djokovic earned his share of applause when he invited his friend Ibrahimovic to hit a couple of balls with him after match point.

It had not been that easy from the start as Federer, who has slipped to sixth in the rankings after enduring his worst season in 10 years, broke his opponent's serve in the third game.

The 17-times grand slam champion unsettled Djokovic by attacking the net as often as possible and hitting some sharp groundstrokes.

Federer looked set to qualify for his first Masters Series final this year when he broke Djokovic again in the opening game of the second set, but the Serb hit back for 1-1.

Federer lost the initiative after errors began to creep into his game and he also struggled with his serve. Djokovic broke Federer's serve a second time to lead 4-2 and he carried the momentum through the deciding set.

Both players will meet again next week at the ATP World Tour Finals in London after they were drawn on Saturday in the same round-robin group.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts after defeating Roger Federer of Switzerland in their semi-final match of the Paris Masters men's singles tennis tournament at the Palais Omnisports of Bercy in Paris, November 2, 2013. [Photo/Agencies]