Federer Downs Raonic to Win 98th Career Title

Roger Federer made a triumphant return to tennis as he secured a 6-4, 7-6 victory in the finals of the Stuttgart Open over Canadian powerhouse, Milos Raonic.

Federer had earlier defeated Nick Krygios in the semi-finals to be placed No.1 in the world rankings. His toughest opponent was expected to be the young Alexander Zverev but Krygios lived up to that tag, taking him to two tie-breaks before caving in.

But Federer faced none of those problems in the final against Raonic, pulling out a trademark performance to warm up in the best possible way before his favourite Grand Slam, the Wimbledon.

Speaking about his victory, Federer said, “I am really happy. I thought it was a good final and I played well. It is a great comeback from me. I think we are very happy with this tournament.”

“I think I was a little better at the bigger points. It has been difficult the last few years losing some tight matches but I am very happy to have won this year”, he added.

He looked in a different league against Raonic and seemed to have shrugged off the slight scare in the semi-finals against Kyrgios. Raonic did not do much wrong, dropping only one game on his serve throughout the match.

But even that proved to be too much against the class of Federer as he breezed through the first set and drew a double fault in the deciding game of the second before seeing out the victory.

The Swiss Maestro did not exactly sail through the tournament as he dropped two sets enroute to victory. They came against Kyrgios and Zverev. But he had been in such situations in the past and used his experience which paid off for him in the end.