Roger Federer made history on Sunday in the Miami Open presented by Itau. Not only did he lift his fourth trophy at the ATP Masters 1000 event, but he set and matched several personal serving records in the process.

Federer won all but three of his service points (32/35) against 2018 champion John Isner. The Swiss has now played 154 tour-level finals, and the three points he lost on serve is the fewest he has dropped in any of those championship matches. His previous low in a final came five years ago in Basel, where he lost five service points (32/37) against David Goffin.

Fewest Service Points Lost In A Final

This was also just the sixth time in 1,460 tour-level matches that Federer has won 100 per cent of his first-serve points. It is the first time he has done so in a championship match. The most first-serve points Federer has won in a match without losing one of those points is 29, which he did in his lone Tokyo appearance in 2006 against retired German Benjamin Becker.

Matches Without Losing A First-Serve Point

Not only was Federer’s performance impressive for a final, but it ranked among the best of his career in any round. The three service points Federer lost is tied for the fewest he has lost in any of his tour-level completed matches. He only lost three service points against Ivo Karlovic in his Miami opener in 2014. In that match, Federer played 17 more service points.

Fewest Service Points Lost In A Completed Tour-Level Match

“I think I was very clear on how I wanted to play, so I think that helped that I was able to not just have the plan, but then being able to execute. It’s always two things: having the plan and then it not working. Of course to win every single point, things need to go your way against him,” Federer said. “So there needs to be both sides to the thing because he did have chances obviously to win some points. But apparently also on second serve I hardly dropped any points. I just can be very happy on either end, return and serve, and that’s why I’m so happy that I was able to produce a performance like this in a final.”

Editor’s Note: Service stats do not include the following: All Davis Cup (48 matches), 2000 & 2004 Olympics (8 matches) and 1999 Basel 2R vs. Alexander Popp.

Statistical assistance provided by Joshua Rey.

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Roger Federer is flying high, currently leading the ATP Race To London after winning his 28th ATP Masters 1000 title at the Miami Open presented by Itau.

But just a few years ago, the Swiss didn’t know if he would ever find such form again. Federer reached the 2016 Australian Open semi-finals, losing to World No. 1 Novak Djokovic. The next day, while running a bath for his daughters, he heard a click in his knee. After returning home to Switzerland, Federer learned from an MRI that he had broken his meniscus and needed surgery.

“[I] couldn’t believe it. [I] was actually quite emotional, especially after the surgery, looking down at my foot and understanding that maybe this leg or this knee will never be the same,” Federer said. “Took it on my chin and said, ‘Okay, I’ll start working basically that next day after I came back from the hospital’.”

Federer did not immediately find his form, though. His knee still bothered him during clay-court tournaments in Monte-Carlo and Rome, and then his back began to act up. That forced him to withdraw from Roland Garros.

“I just realised there was no way I could even win a match there,” Federer said.

While the Swiss’ back got better on the grass, his knee did not. So after a semi-final loss against Milos Raonic, Federer decided that his body needed a break, and his team agreed. Federer did not compete for the rest of the season.

“It gave me all the time I needed as well on the practice court to work on my game again,” Federer said. “So when I did come back in 2017, I came back so strong.”

Federer was the 17th seed at the Australian Open, yet he managed to earn his first Grand Slam championship in nearly five years, overcoming a 1-3 deficit in the fifth set of the final against Rafael Nadal to emerge victorious. At 35 years and 174 days, Federer became the oldest major since Ken Rosewall in 1971.

“I couldn’t believe it myself because I actually thought it was going to take me at least almost half of a season to get into the swing of things,” Federer said. “But this fairytale ended very nicely by winning the Australian Open in my comeback in a final against Rafa where I was down 1-3 in the fifth. The rest we know I go on, I turn it around and I win it. So it was maybe one of the most special moments in my entire tennis career.”

At home in Mallorca, Rafael Nadal’s preparations for the upcoming European clay court swing are already in progress.

The World No. 2, who was forced to withdraw from a semi-final showdown against Roger Federer at the BNP Paribas Open due to pain in his right knee, resumed training last week by taking to the practice courts of the Rafa Nadal Academy by Movistar.

The 32-year-old is targeting a mid-April return to the ATP Tour, just in time to defend his Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters title. An 11-time champion at the ATP Masters 1000 event, Nadal holds an Open-Era record of eight successive titles in Monaco between 2005-2012. It will mark the first time Nadal has competed on clay since June 2018, when he defeated Dominic Thiem 6-4, 6-3, 6-2 to lift his 11th Roland Garros title.

Nadal looks set to enter a crucial stretch of the calendar with fitness and form. In addition to the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters, the Spaniard is also scheduled to compete at the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, the Mutua Madrid Open, the Internazionali BNL d’Italia and Roland Garros. From April through June, Nadal will be defending 4,680 ATP Ranking points after triumphing in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, Rome and Paris last year.

No. 33 (Career High) Felix Auger-Aliassime, +24
The 18-year-old Canadian continued his impressive start to the 2019 ATP Tour season by reaching his first ATP Masters 1000 semi-final at the Miami Open presented by Itau. Auger-Aliassime, who now owns a 14-7 tour-level record this season, defeated three seeded opponents en route to the last four in Florida.

The #NextGenATP Canadian overcame 29th seed Marton Fucsovics in the second round and also beat 17th seed Nikoloz Basilashvili and 11th-seeded Borna Coric in back-to-back matches, before falling to defending champion John Isner in straight sets. Auger-Aliassime rises 24 places to a career-high No. 33 in the ATP Rankings.

No. 4 Roger Federer, +1
After a run to the BNP Paribas Open final in Indian Wells (l. to Thiem), Roger Federer completed a successful month by lifting his 101st tour-level trophy at the Miami Open presented by Itau. After recovering from a set down to beat Radu Albot in his opening match, Federer completed straight-sets wins over Filip Krajinovic, Daniil Medvedev, Kevin Anderson, Denis Shapovalov and John Isner to triumph in Miami for the fourth time. Federer leapfrogs Indian Wells champion Dominic Thiem into the No. 4 position in the ATP Rankings. Read More & Watch Miami Highlights.

No. 8 (Career High) Stefanos Tsitsipas, +2
Following his second-round loss to Auger-Aliassime at the BNP Paribas Open, Stefanos Tsitsipas picked up wins over Mackenzie McDonald and Leonardo Mayer to reach the Miami Open presented by Itau fourth round for the first time. Despite a final-set tie-break loss to Denis Shapovalov in the Round of 16, Tsitsipas jumps two spots to a career-high No. 8 in the ATP Rankings.

No. 20 (Career High) Denis Shapovalov, +3
The 19-year-old Canadian has now reached a Masters 1000 semi-final in each of the past three ATP Tour seasons, following runs to the last four in Canada (2017) and Madrid (2018). At the Miami Open presented by Itau, Shapovalov defeated Daniel Evans, Andrey Rublev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Frances Tiafoe to join countryman Auger-Aliassime in the semi-finals. A straight-sets loss to eventual champion Roger Federer followed, but Shapovalov’s semi-final run confirmed his place inside the Top 20 of the ATP Rankings for the first time.

Other Notable Movers

No. 17 (Career High) Nikoloz Basilashvili, +2
No. 28 Pablo Carreno Busta, -7
No. 30 Frances Tiafoe, +4
No. 66 Malek Jaziri, -7
No. 67 Jordan Thompson, +10
No. 70 Pablo Andujar, +18
No. 74 Federico Delbonis, +9
No. 80 Marius Copil, -7
No. 84 Denis Kudla, -13
No. 85 Nicolas Jarry, -6
No. 86 Guido Andreozzi, -6
No. 88 (Career High) Miomir Kecmanovic, +7
No. 89 Daniel Evans, +8
No. 90 Andrey Rublev, +9
No. 97 Tomas Berdych, -8
No. 98 Ricardas Berankis, -16

The season is only three months old, but there’s already a plethora of storylines to track. Here are the top seven stories of 2019 so far:

1. Federer Starts With A Bang (Again)
Roger Federer is proving age is just a number in 2019 after yet another impressive start to the season. So far in 2019, the Swiss superstar has become the second player in the Open Era to claim 100 career titles and also captured his 28th ATP Masters 1000 crown.

The 37-year-old has won 15 of his past 16 matches including a seventh trophy at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships (d. Tsitsipas), which saw him follow in the footsteps of American Jimmy Connors (109 titles), a runner-up finish at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells (l. to Thiem) and a fourth Miami Open presented by Itau title (d. Isner). Read & Watch Miami Final Highlights

Federer, with an 18-2 record this year, got off to a 17-2 start after three minutes in 2018, with the Australian Open and ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament crowns, which helped him rise to No. 1 in the ATP Rankings, and went 19-1 in 2017, including trophies in Melbourne, Indian Wells and Miami.

Having entered Indian Wells with 680 points in the ATP Race To London, he now leads the year-to-date standings with 2,280 points — 55 points ahead of second-placed Serbian Novak Djokovic (2,225). After three months of the season, the Swiss leads the battle for a place at the Nitto ATP Finals, to be held at The O2 in London from 10-17 November.

2. Tsitsipas Backs Up Next Gen ATP Finals Success
Stefanos Tsitsipas continues his surge as one of the sport’s youngest and most charismatic stars. Four months on from capturing the 2018 Next Gen ATP Finals title, the 20-year-old has become the first Greek to break into the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings — and this week moved up to a career-high No. 8. Read Latest ATP Rankings Movers Of The Week

In starting 2019 at No. 15, Tsitsipas recorded the biggest win of his career over Roger Federer en route to the Australian Open semi-finals (l. to Nadal) — the youngest Grand Slam semi-finalist since 20-year-old Djokovic at the 2007 US Open — and the following month he clinched his second ATP Tour title at the Open 13 Provence in Marseille (d. Kukushkin).

The YouTube vlogger, with 140,000 followers, also advanced to the Dubai final (l. to Federer), dropping to 2-3 in title matches, but at No. 4 in the ATP Race To London (145 points behind third-placed Rafael Nadal), Tsitsipas is well-placed for a first qualification to the eight-man season finale in November.

3. Felix’s Meteoric Rise
Ever since Felix Auger-Aliassime became the youngest player to win a main draw match on the ATP Challenger Tour at the age of 14, the Canadian has been on the global radar. Over the past three months, the 18-year-old has soared from No. 108 in the ATP Rankings to his current career-high of No. 33.

His confidence has grown as a result of reaching his first ATP Tour final at the Rio Open presented by Claro (l. to Djere) on 24 February. He went on to record his first Top 10 victory against then No. 10-ranked Tsitsipas in the BNP Paribas Open second round, then qualified for Miami and became the ATP Masters 1000 tournament’s youngest semi-finalist for 35 years (l. to Isner).

He’s in second position, behind Tsitsipas, in the ATP Race To Milan for a place at the 21-and-under Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan and, one of three Canadians — also Milos Raonic and Denis Shapovalov — in the Top 14 of the ATP Race To London. After Shapovalov also reached the Miami semi-finals, the Canadians are pushing each other to new heights.

Read Feature – Felix’s Philosophy: ‘I’m Not Scared Of Losing’ 

4. Thiem Expands His Horizons
Dominic Thiem has forged a reputation in recent years as a clay-court ironman, befitting the reputation of his Austrian predecessor Thomas Muster. But after having gotten off a 3-4 start to the year — including appearances at two clay-court tournaments — heading into Indian Wells, the 25-year-old needed a confidence boost.

In the space of 10 days, and with former World No. 9 Nicolas Massu as a part of his team alongside long-time coach Gunter Bresnik, Thiem won six straight matches — including three-set victories over Raonic and No. 4-ranked Federer — for the biggest title of his career, his first ATP Masters 1000 crown.

Read Feature: Massu On Thiem: “Ask Dom To Do Something And He’ll Do It – Just Better”

World No. 5 Thiem now has 1,990 ATP Rankings points to defend on the upcoming European clay-court swing, which includes 1,200 points from a 2018 runner-up finish at Roland Garros.

5. Silverware Gets Spread Out
When Federer defeated Isner in the final of the Miami Open presented by Itau on Sunday, he ended a record-breaking ATP Tour streak of 19 tournaments in a row that had until then produced 19 different singles winners.

He was the season’s first repeat winner in the most competitive season to date in ATP Tour history. Never before had it taken so long to produce a multiple champion. The remarkable diversity in winners, with players aged from 20 to 37, is a dramatic indication of the continuing rapidly growing depth in the men’s professional tennis.

6. Djokovic Extends ATP Rankings Lead, Now For Clay Bid
Djokovic started the year in imperial form with a record seventh Australian Open crown, but for a second straight year left March’s two Masters 1000 tournaments with little to show. After a BNP Paribas Open third-round exit (l. to Kohlschreiber) and a Last 16 loss in Miami (l. to Bautista Agut), fans are wondering what to expect for the clay-court swing.

The Serbian has a 2,345-point lead over second-placed Nadal (2,345), the player he beat in the Melbourne final, in the ATP Rankings. Djokovic started 2019 with 9,135 points and now has 11,070 points, in comparison to Nadal’s current tally of 8,725 points.

View Latest ATP Rankings

Nadal, who has not competed since 15 March, is scheduled to return at the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters that begins on 14 April. The Spaniard has 4,680 ATP Ranking points to defend after triumphing in Monte-Carlo, Barcelona, Rome and Paris last year, while Djokovic, who has finished as the year-end No. 1 in 2011-12, 2013-14 and 2018, has a total of 855 points to defend on red dirt.

7. Motivated Monfils On Comeback Trail
One of the sport’s greatest sights is watching the athletic and flexible Gael Monfils play at his best level and produce sublime Hot Shots, with a smile on his face. After a series of injury woes, Monfils has made a significant effort in the first quarter of 2019 to return to his peak performance days and his career-high of No. 6 in the ATP Rankings (7 November 2016).

The 32-year-old is up to World No. 19 on the back of his eighth ATP Tour title in Rotterdam (d. Wawrinka) and semi-final exits at the Sofia Open (l. to Medvedev) and Dubai (l. to Tsitsipas).

A LOOK BACK
Casino Admiral Trophy (Marbella, Spain): In 2018, the comeback quest of Pablo Andujar was well-documented. It was one of the most captivating storylines of the year, as the former World No. 32 battled back from three elbow surgeries to compete at the highest level once again. The Spaniard capped a resurgent campaign in extraordinary fashion, rising a total of 1,619 spots to No. 82 in the year-end ATP Rankings. It was the biggest jump among players to finish in the Top 100 since 2004, as Andujar reaped the rewards of three ATP Challenger Tour titles and an ATP Tour crown in Marrakesh.

He wasn’t done there. The 33-year-old continues to make great strides in 2019, and on Sunday he notched yet another title with his victory on home soil in Marbella. Andujar produced one of the greatest comebacks of the year in the final, rallying from a set and a break down to defeat World No. 67 Benoit Paire 4-6, 7-6(6), 6-4 in two hours and 25 minutes.

Sound on ??@AndujarPablo reacts to his victory in Marbella, taking the ? @casinoadmiralt pic.twitter.com/TcAS8eYu84

— ATP Challenger Tour (@ATPChallenger) March 31, 2019

Not only did Andujar find his back against the wall at 4-6, 2-5, but the home favourite was forced to save a match point while serving to stay in the championship. The match was a microcosm of the guile, grit and determination that Andujar has displayed throughout his year-long comeback. Now 5-0 in finals upon returning to the tour, he adds to Challenger victories in Alicante, Florence and Buenos Aires and an ATP Tour crown at the Grand Prix Hassan II.

Having sat outside the Top 1,700 less than 14 months ago, Andujar has risen to No. 70 in the ATP Rankings with his triumph in Marbella.

“This victory is very important for me given that I barely competed in February due to my son’s birth,” said Andujar. “Also, during the Australian swing I didn’t win a match and I needed that to get my confidence back and find my game. It is very special to do it at home and this will help me for the upcoming tournaments. Now I have to try and defend a lot of points.

“This part of my career is an extra. A moment that wasn’t in my mind after being sidelined for so long because of my elbow and I’m trying to enjoy every minute to the limit. Having my family by my side makes me very, very happy. If I’m able to enjoy tennis as well, what else can I ask for?”

Meanwhile, on the doubles court, New York Open champions Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies added yet another crown as a team. In fact, Krawietz has been a force in the past year, claiming a total of 10 titles with three different partners. Seven of those victories have come with Mies.

Open Harmonie Mutuelle (Saint-Brieuc, France): Kamil Majchrzak became the 12th first-time winner of the 2019 season, streaking to the title in Saint-Brieuc. The 23-year-old Pole found his game on the indoor hard courts of the Tennis Club Saint Brieuc, ousting a red-hot Gregoire Barrere in the quarter-finals, defending champion Ricardas Berankis in the semis and home hope Maxime Janvier for the title. He down the Frenchman 6-3, 7-6(1) on Sunday afternoon.

Majchrzak, who rises 24 spots to a career-high No. 130, was competing in his fourth Challenger final. He previously fell in Mohammedia, Morocco in 2015, and twice in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, finishing runner-up in 2017 and 2018.

Poland is on the rise in 2019, with Majchrzak and Hubert Hurkacz the only players from the European nation in the Top 500 of the ATP Rankings. Hurkacz is coming off a quarter-final result at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells and signature win over Dominic Thiem in Miami.

A LOOK AHEAD
The Mexican swing kicks off with the Abierto GNP Seguros, which took home Tournament of the Year honours in 2015. It is one of two combined ATP Challenger and WTA events on the calendar, along with the grass-court stop in Nottingham. Tennys Sandgren and Bradley Klahn lead the pack, with Feliciano Lopez and Casper Ruud seeded third and fourth. Ernesto Escobedo, champion in 2015, is an unseeded threat.

After a one-year hiatus, the circuit returns to the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Sophia Antipolis, France. Home hope Pierre-Hugues Herbert is the top seed and is accompanied by fellow Top 100 players Robin Haase, Benoit Paire and Albert Ramos-Vinolas.

And at the second edition of Juan Carlos Ferrero’s tournament in Alicante, Spain, it will be Andujar looking to retain his title. The top seed took the first step in his comeback here last year, lifting the trophy as an unseeded wild card.

Roger Federer extended his ‘Big Titles’ lead over Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal on Sunday by capturing his fourth Miami Open presented by Itau title.

If Djokovic won a record seventh trophy in Miami, he would have tied the Swiss’ top mark. But instead Federer, at 37 years old, earned his 54th Big Title – a combination of Grand Slam, Nitto ATP Finals and Masters 1000 crowns — to give himself breathing room ahead of Djokovic (52) and Rafael Nadal (50).

Federer’s form got better throughout his run in Miami, as he ultimately beat 2018 champion John Isner 6-1, 6-4 in the final. It is Federer’s 28th Masters 1000 victory, trailing only Djokovic (33) and Nadal (32). The father of four’s win marks the 16th season in which he has captured a Big Title.

While Federer has not competed on clay the past two seasons, he will have a chance to add to his Big Title total on the red dirt. The No. 1 player in the ATP Race To London is currently slated to compete at the Mutua Madrid Open and Roland Garros. The Swiss has emerged victorious in Madrid three times (twice on clay, once on hard), and he also won the Roland Garros title in 2009.

“I think what this [Miami] win does for me, it just takes even more pressure off from the clay court season,” Federer said. “I’m very excited. It’s a good challenge, good test.”

The Big Titles race will heat up on the clay as Federer, Djokovic and Nadal will all battle for the top spot. World No. 1 Djokovic will be keen to get back on track after third round and fourth round exits in Indian Wells and Miami, respectively. He has not captured a Big Title on clay courts since 2016 Roland Garros.

Nadal will be able to tie Federer’s mark if he wins all four Big Titles on clay for the second time. In 2010 the lefty triumphed at Monte-Carlo, Madrid, Rome and Roland Garros. Nadal has earned 33 of his 50 Big Titles on clay.

Did You Know?
With his victory in Miami, Federer also passed Djokovic for the lead in the ATP Race To London. It is the third straight year Federer has topped the Race upon leaving Miami. Read More

Current and Former Champions’ Big Titles Won (Records Since 1990)

* Becker’s four other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.
** Edberg’s three other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.