Roger Federer believes that his victory over Novak Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Dubai Tennis Championships shows that he is heading in "the right direction".

The 32-year-old world number eight got the better of his opponent 3-6 6-3 6-2 in one hour and 45 minutes on Friday.

"The [close moments] sometimes that decide matches, that's where you just need that extra confidence or that extra mental belief that you're going to win instead of lose," ATP Tour's official website quotes him as saying.

"I think that's what I've got back right now. That's why I think I have been playing consistently well for some months again.

"This is big. This is a big step in the right direction for me. It gives me a lot of confidence, I hope. Physically I'm doing very well again, still holding up perfectly, and clearly it's been a lot of tennis now again this week. I just hope I can finish it well tomorrow."

Federer will take on Tomas Berdych in the final on Saturday.