Roger Federer clinched his 100th ATP Singles Title after overcoming Stefanos Tsitsipas’ challenge in the finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Saturday. The 37-year-old Swiss became the second male tennis player in history to achieve the feat following the footsteps of Tennis Hall of Fame member Jimmy Connors, who won a total of 109 singles titles in his career.
Federer broke the Greek World No. 11 in the first game of the match itself. Tsitsipas had two break points when the scoreline read 5-4 against his favor but the Swiss living legend kept his cool to not only fend off the challenge but also win the set.
The second set was an even-steven contest until 4-4 but Federer used all of his wily experience against the 20-year-old to break him again. He took the honors 6-4, 6-4 in straight sets.
“I’m delighted. It’s great to win my eighth here in Dubai and in combination with my 100th singles title,” said Federer after wrapping up the game in 69 minutes.
On Monday, when the next rankings would be updated, he would climb three places to sit on the fourth position. His adversary, Stefanos Tsitsipas, would break into the top 10 in World Rankings for the first time.