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TENNIS

Wawrinka wins second straight Chennai Open

Stan Wawrinka warmed up Sunday for the defence of his Australian Open title by winning the ATP Chennai Open for a second straight year and for the third time since 2011.

Wawrinka wins second straight Chennai Open
Photo: STRDEL/AFP

The Swiss world number four ended Slovenian qualifier Aljaz Bedene's giant-killing feats in the season-opening $450,000 event with a 6-3, 6-4 win in a 69-minute final.
   
Some 4,000 Indian fans at the Nungambakkam tennis stadium cheered wildly as the popular Wawrinka, making his seventh appearance in Chennai, outplayed Bedene.
   
"This has been a perfect week for me," the genial Swiss said in English.

"I served well and hit the ball good.
   
"It is amazing to win for the third time here, but I have to continue like this in (the) future also."
   
Wawrinka pocketed $73,400 and 250 ranking points for his efforts.

But his biggest gain was a perfect tune-up for the Australian Open, which starts in Melbourne on January 19th.
   
"I am very happy with my game and I should have good practice when I get to Melbourne in two days time and will be ready when the Open starts," he said.
   
The 29-year-old did not drop a single set in the tournament, seemingly beginning the new season with the same zeal he showed by helping Switzerland win its maiden Davis Cup title last year.
   
Wawrinka had followed his win over Edouard Roger-Vasselin of France in last year's Chennai Open final by beating Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final three weeks later.

'Chennai's lucky charm' 

"Chennai is a lucky charm for sure," he said. "This is a special place for me and I always enjoy coming back here. I hope I can do as well in Melbourne as I did last year."
   
Wawrinka said he was still a long way away from reaching the standards of players like compatriot Roger Federer or stars like Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.
   
"Guys like those have been winning big tournaments for so long, I have managed just one Grand Slam so far," he said.
   
"Today was only my second title since last April, so I know I have a long way to go."
   
Wawrinka wrapped up the first set in 30 minutes with a break in the sixth game in which he unleashed two lethal backhands down the line to leave Bedene stranded.
   
Bedene, hoping to become the first Slovenian to win an ATP Tour title, gifted a break in the seventh game of the second set when he double-faulted and then let Wawrinka smash an easy forehand winner.
   
Bedene had entered his first Tour final after coming through the qualifiers to scalp three Spanish seeds in number two Feliciano Lopez, number three Roberto Bautista-Agut and number five Guillermo Garcia Lopez.
   
Bedene, who earned $38,650 and 150 points for winning three qualifying matches and four more in the main draw, said the tournament had boosted his confidence like never before.
   
"This has to be the best week of my career," he said.

"Maybe I was a bit tired today. I could not sleep well last night because I was just thinking of my first final.
   
"But then Stan showed what a great player he is. There is a lot to learn from him."
   
Also on Sunday, Jonathan Marray of Britain and Yen-Hsun Lu of Taiwan won the doubles title defeating the top-seeded pair of India's Leander Paes and Raven Klassen of South Africa 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).

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ROGER FEDERER

Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?

Roger Federer is talking optimistically about returning to his "highest level" after knee surgery, but does tennis have to start adjusting to a future without the Swiss star?

Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?
Is it the end of the line for Roger? Photo: Martin BUREAU / AFP

The 20-time Grand Slam winner announced on Wednesday that he would be sidelined until 2021 after his second operation in a matter of months.

Federer remains upbeat, tweeting: “I plan to take the necessary time to be 100 percent ready to play at my highest level.”

In some ways 2020 is a good season to miss after the coronavirus ravaged the tennis schedule. Writing Federer off in the past has proved dangerous.

He returned from a six-month injury lay-off to claim the Australian Open in 2017, winning his eighth Wimbledon crown later that year.

But he will be 40 in 2021 and is now heading into uncharted territory.

Despite his groaning trophy cabinet, there are two factors that will motivate Federer to keep going — the risk of losing his grip on the men's Grand Slam title record and a missing Olympics singles gold medal.

Rafael Nadal has 19 majors, just one shy of Federer's mark and Djokovic has 17.

Spain's Nadal will be fancied to draw level with Federer at the French Open, rescheduled for September, while few would bet against Djokovic winning in New York weeks earlier.

In April, Federer said he was “devastated” when Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II. Last year he fell agonisingly short at the All England Club, failing to convert two championship points on his own serve against Djokovic.

The Wimbledon grass probably remains his best chance of adding to his Grand Slam collection — he has not won the US Open since 2008 and his only title at Roland Garros came in 2009.

Even though Federer has slipped from the very pinnacle of the game, he is still a major threat to Nadal and Djokovic.

'Golden' ambitions

Last year, the world number four had a 53-10 win-loss record and he reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open in January in his only tournament this year.

Federer, who is still six ATP titles short of Jimmy Connors' all-time record of 109, has one glaring omission from his CV — the Olympic title.

The Swiss won doubles gold in Beijing in 2008 with compatriot Stan Wawrinka but lost in the singles final to Andy Murray in London four years later.

The postponed Tokyo Games will almost certainly be Federer's last opportunity to complete a career “golden” Grand Slam — he will turn 40 on the day of the closing ceremony next year.

Tennis will feel the loss of the elegant Federer keenly when he walks off the court for the last time.

Djokovic and Nadal have been the dominant forces in recent years but the Swiss remains the biggest draw and last month topped Forbes' list of the world's highest-earning athletes.

His last appearance on court was in front of nearly 52,000 fans — touted by organisers as a world record for tennis — at a charity match against Nadal in Cape Town in February.

Federer is nearly always the crowd favourite wherever he plays and has proved a perfect ambassador for the sport since he won his first Grand Slam title in 2003.

He certainly expects to be back and competitive next year.

“I will be missing my fans and the tour dearly but I will look forward to seeing everyone back on tour at the start of the 2021 season,” he tweeted.

The avalanche of support from his adoring fans showed they would miss him too, but they will have to get used to a time when he is gone for good.

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