Dubai, United Arab Emirates (SportsNetwork.com) – Roger Federer posted a 6-3,
7-5 victory over top-seeded Novak Djokovic in the final of the Dubai
Championships on Saturday.
The second-seeded Swiss star won the tournament for the second straight year
and seventh time overall.
After fighting off two set points to level the second set at 5-5, Federer
broke Djokovic’s serve in the next game and then saved a break point to
capture his 84th career title and second of 2015. He also won the season-
opening event in Brisbane.
“I think the first set belonged to me; whereas the second set belonged to him
more,” Federer said. “He created many more opportunities. I struggled to get
into his service games more frequently. It seemed like the moment I wasn’t
serving great he created chances for himself and put a lot of pressure on me.”
The 33-year-old Federer swatted 12 aces and saved all seven break points he
faced while improving to 20-17 lifetime against Djokovic.
Djokovic, 27, lost for the first time in five Dubai finals.
“I thought it was a good match,” Djokovic said. “I thought there wasn’t much
difference, a few points decided a winner.”
Federer or Djokovic have won the Dubai title 11 of the last 13 years.
