The Sports Lowdown For All Your News and OpinionsRoger Federer has moved into the final of the Cincinnati Masters tournament after the Swiss maestro defeated an in-form Andy Murray 6-4 7-6.
Federer was in dominant form in securing the first set, and even though the Brit provided a much stiffer test in the second set, the world number three held him off to complete the victory.
In the opening set, Federer made a blistering start as he gained the early break when Murray netted a forehand. The Swiss maestro was sharp in his attacking play, and overall dominant on serve, as Murray struggled to make any impact on the Federer service games. Even though the Brit did very well to keep the deficit to only one break of serve, Federer maintained his lead impressively and the set was sealed emphatically with yet another winner to add to his growing collection.
As the second set got underway, Murray was much more settled and the early service games offered little opportunity for both players to get the upper hand. Even though Federer failed to capitalise on a break point mid-way through the set, he remained impenetrable on serve but Murray continued to stay with his opponent. This ensured that the set would reach a tie-break, and despite recovering an early deficit in the tie-break, Murray’s resilience was eventually ended as Federer eventually edged it to secure the victory and his place in the final.
In the final, Federer will face Novak Djokovic after the world number one outlasted Alexandr Dolgopolov 4-6 7-6 6-2. The Ukrainian was two points away from recording a shock victory in the second set tie-break after deservedly claiming the first set, but the world number one dug deep to snatch the tie-break before running out a comfortable winner in the decider.
