Federer Finds His Happy Place In Cincinnati

If Roger Federer is looking for a happy place to move beyond his near-miss at Wimbledon, then he need look no further than the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio. Home of the Western & Southern Open on the outskirts of Cincinnati, the event first held in 1899 is the Swiss legend’s most successful ATP Masters 1000 tournament.

The 38-year-old has won seven titles here, more than at any of the other eight Masters 1000 tournaments. Federer, who has spent a record 310 weeks at No. 1 in the ATP Rankings during his career, had his first practise in Cincinnati Friday, the same day the draw was made.

Set to play his first match since falling 13-12 in the fifth set to Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final, during which he held two match points, Federer resets his focus and begins his pursuit of his fourth title of the season.

A finalist last year in his first appearance for three years in Cincinnati, Federer next week will open against Italian Matteo Berrettini or Argentine Juan Ignacio Londero in the second round at the seventh Masters 1000 tournament of the year. He has not lost in his first match at this event since 2004, when he fell in three sets against Dominik Hrbaty.

The third seed is in the top half of the draw, where he may get another shot at last year’s champion Djokovic in the semi-finals. Djokovic and Rafael Nadal currently have a significant lead over Federer in the ATP Race to London, but a title in Cincinnati would elevate Federer into the conversation for the year-end World No. 1 ATP Ranking.

Federer has advanced to the final here in six of his past eight appearances, improving his record to 46-9. The Swiss star has earned 11 victories against opponents inside the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings in Cincinnati. He won the title in 2005, ’07, ’09-10, ’12, and ’14-’15.

Federer leads the ATP Tour with an 88.4 winning percentage (38-5) in 2019 , emerging victorious in Dubai, Miami and Halle. All of his losses came against players who are currently ranked in the Top 10.

Did You Know?
This is the 16th season in which Federer has earned at least three tour-level titles. The most trophies he has lifted in a single year is 12, which he accomplished in 2006.