Roger Federer must have forgotten his mom's advice

Roger Federer's mom Lynette once said in a newspaper interview, "I used to say to Roger, 'When you have these outbursts like this, you're just telling your opponent that you're ready for him to beat you'".

She was right.

Roger Federer lost his temper and the match against Novak Djokovic in the semifinals at the Sony Ericsson Open last night.

Federer angrily broke his racket Friday en route to a 3-6, 6-2, 6-3 loss to Djokovic.

Federer fell behind 2-love in the third set, and when he netted an easy forehand to start the next game, he slammed his racket to the concrete, mangling it.

The outburst came as a shock especially to his fans.

“I was just frustrated,” a red-eyed Federer said shortly after the match.

“Didn’t feel great. It’s just a natural thing I did.”

Federer lost the next two games as the match slipped away despite support from a sympathetic crowd.

Djokovic’s opponent in the final Sunday will be Andy Murray who beat Juan Martin del Potro 6-1, 5-7, 6-2.

(Via AP; Images by Matthew Stockman/Al Bello/Getty Images)