New No 1 Federer cruises into final
Roger Federer scored his 14th win over Italy’s Andreas Seppi with a routine straight-sets performance to put the world No 1 into the final of the ATP World Tour event in Rotterdam.
The Swiss will face Grigor Dimitrov in the final, with Federer aiming to lift the 97th trophy of his storied career.
Federer did not waver in his 6-3 7-6 (7-3) victory, a day after he guaranteed his return to the top of the world rankings after more than five years, becoming the oldest man, at 36, to reach the summit.
‘‘I felt OK today, maybe a bit heavy on court but I was aggressive,’’ Federer, who admitted to a late night the previous night.
‘‘I started finding energy midway through the first set, but the start was tough.’’
World No 5 Dimitrov advanced in unfortunate circumstances when David Goffin was forced to retire after being struck in the eye by a ball off his own racquet.
Federer, a two-time winner at Rotterdam, is keen to face the Bulgarian second seed, whom he has beaten in all six of their matches.
‘‘I’m good, it’s not been a tough week physically, maybe a bit harder emotionally,’’ Federer said.
‘‘What an amazing run its been and a journey it’s been for me . . . to clinch world No 1.
‘‘Getting to No 1 and enjoying it right here at 36, almost 37 years old is an absolute dream come true. I can’t believe it.
‘‘Sometimes at the beginning you get there just because you play so well.
‘‘Later, you sometimes try to fight it back and you wrest it back from somebody else who deserved to be there, and when you’re older you feel like you have to put maybe double the work in. So this one maybe means the most to me throughout my career.’’
Belgian fourth seed Goffin was forced to leave the court for treatment on his eye after the first game of the second set and five minutes later the umpire informed Dimitrov he had won through retirement.
‘‘There are no guarantees on court, anything can happen,’’ Dimitrov said. ‘‘It was a shock to us. There is no insurance out there, but we are professionals and we know the risks.’’