No. 1 again, Federer makes Stuttgart final
STUTTGART, Germany— Roger Federer defeated Nick Kyrgios 6-7 (2), 6-2, 7-6 (5) on Saturday to book his place in the Stuttgart Open final and reclaim the No. 1 ranking from Rafael Nadal.
“It’s nice that it happened, but I’ve other problems,” said Federer, playing his first tournament since March. “I hadn’t played in three months, it’s on grass, it’s fast and difficult to get so far here. Still, I’m delighted to have achieved it.”
The Swiss great will play Milos Raonic as he bids for his 18th grasscourt title and 98th altogether.
Raonic hit 19 aces and saved the only break point he faced as he defeated defending champion Lucas Pouille 6-4, 7-6 (3) in the other semifinal.
Federer was pushed all the way by the fourthseeded Kyrgios, who had 23 aces.
Federer was trailing Nadal by 100 points at the start of the week and is guaranteed of taking the top spot Monday regardless of how Sunday’s final goes. In other tennis news:
• Andy Murray confirmed that he will make his return to competition at the Queen's Club tournament next week after almost a year out injured. He will face Nick Kyrgios in his opening match. The three-time major winner has not played since last year's Wimbledon because of a hip injury and subsequent surgery. Murray practiced at Queen's on Friday ahead of next week's grass-court tournament, delayed a decision until Saturday and then told tournament officials he would be there. Queen's is one of the main warmup tournaments for Wimbledon, which begins July 2.