Western & Southern Open—Cincinnati, Ohio
No. 10 seed Novak Djokovic become the first man ever to capture all nine Masters 1000 titles when he defeated seven-time former winner Roger Federer 6-4, 6-4 on Sunday to capture the Western & Southern Open.
Dominating the baseline rallies from start to finish, Djokovic proved to strong for his higher ranked opponent during the one hour and 24 minute encounter. Striking four aces and winning 78 percent of his second serve points, Djokovic broke serve on three occasions and improved to 24-22 against Federer in lifetime meetings.
Currently ranked No. 10 in the world, Djokovic won his four previous matches in the event in three sets. With no points to defend for the rest of the year, Djokovic will have ample opportunities to reach a top 3 ranking by year’s end.
For Federer, the loss saw him drop to 98 victories in 150 finals during his illustrious career.
Earlier in the day, Kiki Bertens won the biggest title of her career after ousting top ranked Simona Halep 2-6, 7-6(8), 6-2. In an emotional match which saw Halep hold ample chances to close it out, it was Bertens that showed guile and determination to grind out the second set before running away with set three. Winning 71 percent of her first serve points, Bertens improved to 2-3 against Halep in lifetime meetings.
Halep, who will enter the US Open as the No. 1 seed, won the Rogers Cup in Montreal last Sunday.
