Roger Federer retained his Hamburg Masters title with a comprehensive 6-3, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4) victory over French teenager Richard Gasquet on Sunday. Federer was not only looking to retain his Masters title, but also gain revenge over Gasquet when the two met in the final at the Rothenbaum Tennis Centre. The world number one had lost to the 18-year-old in the quarter-finals of the Monte Carlo Masters last month. Russian Marat Safin, who knocked Federer out of the Australian Open semi-finals in January, is the only other player to have beaten him since the start of the US Open last year. Quick lead The top seed had made a habit of starting his matches slowly this week, but was quickly 3-0 ahead against Gasquet. Errors flowed as freely as winners from the racquet of the Frenchman after that and Federer served out the first set 6-3. Gasquet, playing in his second ATP Tour final, was on top for much of the second set, but squandered two more break point chances and paid a heavy price. Wrong footFederer broke to love to lead 6-5, and in the next game the Swiss classily wrong-footed the teenager with an ace to take the set 7-5 and move into an almost unassailable position. Federer, who missed last week's Rome Masters with strained foot ligaments, needed to adjust the strapping on his left foot before the start of set three, which saw no breaks. Gasquet, who lost the initiative in the tiebreak with a double-fault, had saved three match points before winning their quarter-final in Monte Carlo, but this time Federer took his first opportunity when Gasquet overhit a return to hand a 6-3, 7-5, 7-6 (7-4) victory to the Swiss. Gasquet's consolation in defeat was that he will break into the top 50 for the first time in Monday's rankings. Satisfactory winFederer has not lost an ATP final since being beaten by Czech Jiri Novak at Gstaad in 2003. The win completed a highly satisfactory warm-up for Federer a week before he bids to win the French Open Grand Slam for the first time. The 23-year-old Swiss has never gone beyond the quarter-finals at Roland Garros, the only Grand Slam he has yet to win. (AP)
Federer retains Hamburg Masters title
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