Share

Federer claims 1 100th ATP Tour win

Halle - Eighteen-time major champion Roger Federer picked up his first win of the grass-court season by thrashing Japan's Yuichi Sugita in the first round at Halle on Tuesday.

The Swiss top seed, who skipped the entire clay-court schedule in order to be fully fit for Wimbledon, brushed aside lucky loser Sugita 6-3, 6-1 in just 51 minutes, to bring up his 1 100th win on the ATP Tour.

"I had never played him. And playing against me, all are always very motivated," Federer told the Halle Open website.

"That doesn't make it easy, but I'm very satisfied. That was a very good start into the Gerry Weber Open."

Federer, who won his first Grand Slam title since 2012 at the Australian Open in January, lost the first match of his return to German veteran Tommy Haas in Stuttgart last week.

But the world number five was back to his imperious best on Tuesday, as he broke in the fourth game en route to the opening set.

The 66th-ranked Sugita was no match for his illustrious opponent, although he did avoid a second-set bagel by breaking when Federer served for the match.

Federer, 35, will be one of the favourites as he looks to land an eighth title at Wimbledon, which runs from July 3 to July 16.

For now though the world number five will focus on winning the warm-up event in Halle for a ninth time, and he will face in-form home hope Mischa Zverev in the last 16.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mischa Zverev's brother and fourth seed Alexander eased to a 6-3, 6-2 win over Paolo Lorenzi, while Kei Nishikori fought back from a set down to defeat Fernando Verdasco 6-7 (7/9), 6-3, 6-4.

Results from the ATP tournament in Halle on Tuesday (x denotes seeding):

First round

Mischa Zverev (GER) bt Lukas Lacko (SVK) 6-4, 6-4

Kei Nishikori (JPN x3) bt Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-7 (7/9), 6-3, 6-4

Roberto Bautista Agut (ESP x7) bt Carlos Berlocq (ARG) 6-0, 4-6, 6-2

Florian Mayer (GER) bt Benoit Paire (FRA) 6-0, 6-4

Karen Khachanov (RUS) bt Gilles Simon (FRA) 6-2, 6-7 (2/7), 6-3

Bernard Tomic (AUS) bt Tommy Haas (GER) 6-4, 6-4

Robin Haase (NED) bt David Ferrer (ESP) 3-6, 7-5, 6-3

Alexander Zverev (GER x4) bt Paolo Lorenzi (ITA) 6-3, 6-2

Lucas Pouille (FRA x6) bt Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) 1-6, 6-3, 6-4

Roger Federer (SUI x1) bt Yuichi Sugita (JPN) 6-3, 6-1

Mikhail Youzhny (RUS) bt Ivo Karlovic (CRO) 6-3, 7-6 (8/6)

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1472 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2251 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE