Roger Federer demolished starstruck Kei Nishikori in the final of his home town tournament to win the Swiss Indoors title for the fifth time in six years on Sunday.
Federer, appearing in his 98th ATP final of which he has won 68, triumphed 6-1, 6-3 against the 21-year-old Japanese wild card, who was playing the record 16-time Grand Slam champion for the first time.
Nishikori took only six points off Federer’s serve and had to wait until the final game before managing a break point.
Photo: AFP
“It was a dream come true. He has always been my idol. It was a great experience for me. I am looking forward to playing against him again,” said Nishikori, who trained with Federer five years ago.
Federer, 30, was playing his first tournament since the US Open and said he had made the right decision to skip a tournament in Shanghai even if it meant disappointing his Chinese fans.
“I’m at a different point in my career to the younger guys, I have to focus on what’s better for my body, my mind, my family and I think it was the right decision,” Federer said.
Federer, who completed his third match without dropping a set following wins over Andy Roddick and Stanislas Wawrinka, clinched his second title of the year and his first since Doha in January.
Nishikori held serve in the opening game, but the dominant Swiss rattled off the next seven as he totally dominated proceedings against the world No. 32.
Nishikori put up more resistance in the second set, saving two break points as held serve in the second game to at least end Federer’s run.
However, it was only a matter of time and Federer broke in the sixth game. Nishikori defiantly saved four break points, but could do nothing about a perfect Federer lob which left him stranded on the fifth.
The Japanese had his only break point in the ninth game, but Federer saved it and went on to finish off the match with a forehand smash.
Fenerbahce on Thursday earned a rare 2-1 win in England, but were still knocked out of the UEFA Europa League by Nottingham Forest in the playoffs. Forest entered the second leg with a healthy 3-0 lead from the opener in Istanbul — where Vitor Pereira made an impact in his first game in charge — and that proved enough to advance to the round-of-16 with a 4-2 aggregate score. The result was a boost for Forest, struggling at 17th place in the Premier League, in their return to Europe after three decades. They next face Real Betis Balompie or Kerem Akturkoglu gave Fenerbahce
The Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday emphatically got back to winning ways in the NBA, coasting to a 109-94 victory over the New York Knicks as their recent star signing, James Harden, scored 20 points. The Cavs took the lead barely a minute into the game with an Evan Mobley three-pointer and never gave it up in a thoroughly comfortable night for the red-hot Ohio franchise. Former NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) Harden, who was brought in from the Los Angeles Clippers this month, has never won a championship, despite being one of the most decorated players in the league. That was a key
Soccer officials yesterday offered “full support and assistance” to the Iranian team in Australia for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup after the US and Israel launched massive attacks on their homeland. Iran’s 26-strong squad arrived on the Gold Coast days before the strikes on Saturday killed supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as Washington and Tel Aviv seek to topple the Islamic republic. They are due to open their tournament today against South Korea. The AFC in a statement said it “continues to closely monitor the recent developments in the Middle East during this challenging period.” “The AFC’s foremost priority remains the welfare, safety and
ROAD RASH: Marc Marquez retired after a crash, marking the first time after 88 consecutive races stretching back to 2021 that a Ducati bike failed to make the podium Marco Bezzecchi yesterday won the MotoGP season-opening grand prix in Thailand from pole position as defending world champion Marc Marquez retired late with a buckled wheel. Aprilia’s Bezzecchi led from start to finish to top the podium in Buriram, with KTM’s Pedro Acosta second and Trackhouse’s Raul Fernandez third. Ducati’s Marquez is chasing a record-equaling eighth world title this season, but he exited the race in dramatic fashion while in fourth place with five laps to go. The Spaniard, who started from second on the grid, took a corner wide, with the jolt to his bike dislodging the rear tire, badly damaging his
RSS