Federer eases into Halle quarter-finals but Nishikori forced out by injury scare

Top seed Roger Federer qualified for his 15th quarter-final at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle with a straight-sets victory over Mischa Zverev.

The 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 win will earn the Swiss a top-four seeding at Wimbledon and he has now won four out of four against the German.

Zverev saved three set points on his own serve at 4-5 to take the opening set into a tie-break but two passing shot winners by Federer at 5/4 closed it out. Federer’s forehand winner at 4-4 secured the only break of the match and he served out to wrap up victory in one hour and 30 minutes.

Federer meets Florian Mayer in the quarter-finals after his 6-7 (6/8), 6-4, 6-3 win over the sixth-seeded Lucas Pouille.

Kei Nishikori suffered another injury scare when he was forced to retire early in his clash against Karen Khachanov with a hip problem.

It is the third year in a row that the world No 9 has pulled out during a match at the prewimbledon event. Khachanov was leading 3-2 when Nishikori called it a day and will take on fellow young Russian Andrey Rublev in the quarter-finals. Rublev, 19, claimed a 6-0, 3-6, 6-3 victory over Mikhail Youzhny.

Victoria Azarenka won just four games as her run at the Mallorca Open was ended by seventh seed Ana Konjuh. The former world No 1, making a return to tennis from maternity leave following the birth of her first child Leo, lost 6-1, 6-3.

Second seed Anastasija Sevastova, beaten by Caroline Garcia in the final last year, recovered from a set down to see off Varvara Lepchenko 6-7 (2/7), 6-1, 6-3. Commonwealth Games gold medallist Dan Wallace has been suspended from all national swimming programmes for three months by British Swimming and Scottish Swimming after pleading guilty to drink driving.

Governing body Scottish Swimming said Wallace’s ban was due to “a violation of the athlete code of conduct”.

Wallace, pictured, who won the 400 metre individual medley at Glasgow 2014, pleaded