Roger Federer overcame a sluggish start on Sunday (June 16) to win his first title of the year by beating unseeded Mikhail Youzhny 6-7 (5-7), 6-3, 6-4 at the Gerry Weber Open at Halle in Germany.
Roger Federer overcame a sluggish start on Sunday to win his first title of the year by beating unseeded Mikhail Youzhny at the Gerry Weber Open at Halle in Germany.
Returning to grass in his favourite warm-up for Wimbledon, it took the top-seeded Federer until the middle of the second set to really find his form, with the Russian taking the first set 7-5.
Federer had beaten Youzhny in both last year’s semi-final in Halle and the quarter-final at Wimbledon, but it looked for a while on Sunday that the Russian may have discovered a key to finally beating Federer.
But the Swiss came firing back, and hit a perfect backhand passing shot to go up 4-3 in the third, held for 5-3 with a smash, and then he fired a service winner to seal his victory after two hours and two minutes.
Federer has a big following at the Halle tournament and has a street named after him next to the stadium. The fans gave him a standing ovation, while his wife Mirka let out a sigh of relief while keeping an eye on their twin daughters.
This was his first title since Cincinnati in August and his sixth in Halle, and he seems confident heading into Wimbledon where he is looking to defend his title:
“I think I really did well today and that is exactly the kind of wins I need in this part of the season. I’ve been preparing well for this part of the season, the French Open, Halle, Wimbledon stretch going to the US Open and I’m happy. It’s paying off. I’m happy that I’m playing well.”
Federer will be looking to add to his record 17 Grand Slam championships when he defends his title at Wimbledon.
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