Top-ranked Roger Federer beat French teenager Richard Gasquet 6-3, 7-5, 7-6 (4) on Sunday to defend his Hamburg Masters title and collect his tour-leading sixth championship of the year.
By avenging one of only two losses this year, Federer stretched an Open-era record — he has now won 19 consecutive finals.
By winning his third Hamburg Masters in three years, Federer improved his record for the year to 41-2. Going back to the beginning of last year’s United States Open, Federer has a 57-2 record.
One of those losses came to Gasquet last month in the Monte Carlo Masters quarterfinals.
On Sunday, Federer took early control and never relinquished it, although Gasquet was no pushover.
”Once you’ve won once or twice here, you come into the tournament with confidence,” said Federer, who didn’t drop a set on the way to his 28th career title.
Gasquet (18) looks like a younger version of Federer: both use big groundstrokes and one-handed backhands, and both cover the court well and can hit winners from both sides.
”I knew it would be tough; he showed today how well he can play,” Federer said.
Federer was just steadier when it came to the big points. In the first set, he won his first — and only — break point to go up 2-0, and that break of serve proved to be decisive.
A similar thing happened in the second. Federer converted the first of the two break points he held to go up 6-5, and he fired an ace to win the set in the next game.
Gasquet, by contrast, couldn’t convert any of the five break points he gained over the first two sets.
At least he could claim to have won the most thrilling rally. In the ninth game of the second set, Gasquet raced from corner to corner to retrieve Federer’s shots close to the lines and put every shot back — until Federer netted a drop volley attempt.
Neither player faced a break point in the final set and Federer was helped by a double-fault from Gasquet to go up 4-2 in the tiebreaker. But a backhand from Gasquet that sailed wide gave Federer two match points. He only needed one with Gasquet’s forehand going out.
Federer had more winners 38 to 24, but he also had more unforced errors in the match — 40 for 27.
Gasquet was in his second career final and could have become the youngest winner in Hamburg.
”Roger was simply better today,” Gasquet said.
Now ranked 56th, Gasquet will break into the top 50 with his runner-up finish in Hamburg.
The €2 082 500 Hamburg clay-court event is a warm-up for the French Open that starts on May 23.
The French Open is the only major that Federer hasn’t won. — Sapa-AP