Del Potro Beats Gasquet

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Juan Martin Del Potro drew first blood in Group B at the ATP World Tour Finals at the O2 Arena in London with a tense victory over Richard Gasquet.

The Argentine's serve proved the key to success, winning 79 per cent of first serve points as he defeated the Frenchman 6-7 6-3 7-5 in two hours and 23 minutes.

The first six games went to serve, with Gasquet unable to win a single point on the Del Potro delivery.

However, that all changed in the seventh game when the Frenchman earned two break points and took it on the second with a fine backhand winner.

But Del Potro was straight back on serve in the next after picking up three break points, Gasquet saving the first before sending a looping backhand long.

The Argentine once again held to love after his wobble in the previous service game, heaping further pressure on Gasquet, who nevertheless held thanks to clean winners off either flank.

Del Potro predictably held to send it to a tie-break, where it was Gasquet who got the mini-breaks to lead 6-4 before ripping another backhand crosscourt for a winner.

The second set belonged to Del Potro after he broke to lead 3-1 after his opponent gave up a 40-0 lead, the world No 5 rarely troubled on his serve as he comfortably levelled the match.

The decider once again saw serve dominate until Del Potro broke through - this time in the seventh game after earning three break points. Gasquet bravely saved two before dumping a backhand into the net.

The Frenchman dug deep, took Del Potro to 30-all in the next before an ace set up the hold, and Gasquet then held to 15 to make his opponent serve out for the match.

But he was unable to do so, Gasquet remarkably setting up three break points and converting at the first attempt as Del Potro failed to come up with the goods.

At 5-5 Gasquet was right back in it but he quickly found himself down two break points - and although he was spared by Hawk-eye on the second occasion, the point was replayed and a rasping backhand from Del Potro proved too much to handle.

The Wimbledon semi-finalist then had a second chance to serve out the match and this time he did so, carving out two points for the win and sealing it with the first of them when Gasquet netted a typically heavy serve down the middle.

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Del Potro Wins Over Roger in Basel

Juan Martin del Potro held his nerve in a final-set tie-break to beat a dogged Roger Federer 6-4 5-7 7-6 (7-3) in the final of the Swiss Indoors in Basle.

The Argentine, 24, outplayed the world number one in the opening set, breaking in the fifth game to take the lead.

But Federer, seeking a sixth title in his home event, hit back in the second set to level the match.

Del Potro saw off four break points in the decider before taking control in the tie-break to clinch victory.

In the pair's first meeting since the Swiss beat Del Potro 19-17 in August's epic Olympic semi-final at Wimbledon, it was the Argentine who got off to the better start.

The world number eight, who won in Austria the previous week, converted his first break point in the fifth game, using his 6ft 6in frame to patiently pound away from the baseline while waiting for a mistake from the Swiss.

Opportunities for Federer to respond were rare, with the 31-year-old only winning five points on big-hitting Del Potro's serve in an opening set lasting only 34 minutes.

The second was much more keenly contested, although Federer again struggled to find any kind of fluency.

The Swiss could not convert his first break point of the match, in the second game, when Del Potro dug himself out of a hole with a powerful forehand before all but dashing Federer's hopes of a break with a wonderful down-the-line winner.

The defending champion survived three deuces in game five to remain on serve at 3-2 and, in his next service game, conjured up successive aces when questioned at 30-30.

Little drama followed until the 11th game when a stunning forehand cross-court passing shot from Del Potro created the 2009 US Open winner's first break point of the second set.

World Tour Finals

Two of the eight places at the year-end World Tour Finals, which begin on 5 November at London's O2 Arena, remain up for grabs.

The final qualifying event, the Paris Masters, starts on Monday.

Both Federer and Del Potro, who qualified by reaching the quarter-finals in Basle, are assured of their places.

Federer responded immediately with a gorgeous winner of his own to recover to deuce before seeing out the game to lead 6-5.

The local favourite struck first in the tie-break, going a mini-break up at 2-1 when Del Potro netted, and served out to take the second set in 64 minutes.

In the decider, Federer could not take advantage of three break points in the third game, and spurned another opportunity in the seventh.

Serving to take the match into a final-set tie-break, Federer - who had won 13 of their 15 previous meetings - was under pressure at 15-30 but rained down a hat-trick of aces.

However, it only postponed the inevitable, and Del Potro - who won in Vienna last week upon his return from a month out with a wrist injury - converted the first of three championship points in the tie-break.

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Federer Faces Del Potro in Basel

Roger Federer - Getty Images

World number one Roger Federer beat Paul-Henri Mathieu 7-5 6-4 to reach the final of the Swiss Indoors in Basel.

Federer, a five-time winner of the event, will play Juan Martin del Potro in Sunday's final after the second seed beat Richard Gasquet 6-2 6-2.

Del Potro won in Vienna last week and his only loss on indoor hard courts this season came against Federer in the Rotterdam final in February.

Federer is chasing his sixth title in seven years in his hometown event.

Sunday's final is a rematch of the epic Olympic semi-final at Wimbledon in August, when Federer won the decisive third set 19-17.

Federer has a 13-2 career record against Del Potro, though one of the Argentine's victories came in the 2009 US Open final.

"It was almost perfect today," said Del Potro, who has beaten Gasquet in five of their six meetings, including three times in 2012.

"I was very pleased with my serve. But I still have work to do, I had two double-faults in the second set. If I want to win the title, I can't have that."

Federer said: "I'm excited to see how he is going to come out and play.

"We have had a couple of tough ones, at the French Open and particularly at the Olympics. I had a really hard time breaking his serve. The margins are extremely small."

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Del Potro Reaches Estoril Quarters

Federer Overpowers Del Potro

World number three Roger Federer swept aside Juan Martin del Potro in an hour and a half to win the World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam.

The Swiss repeated last month's Australian Open quarter-final win over Del Potro with a 6-1 6-4 victory.

Federer, 30, stormed into a 5-0 lead as he dominated the opening set.

And he got the crucial break in the second when he brought the Argentine to the net before firing a forehand past him to break for 3-2.

Federer's second Rotterdam title, and his 71st on the ATP Tour, takes his head-to-head record against Del Potro to 9-2.

“It's incredible that it took me seven years to come back and defend my title”Roger Federer

The 16-time Grand Slam champion ended 2011 with wins in Basel, Paris and London before adding his first title in Rotterdam for seven years.

"Even if I had a good indoor season last year, this is a great start," he said. "It's incredible that it took me seven years to come back and defend my title, I hope the next time is not so long. But if it is, then it means I'll be playing for another seven years."

Federer has now assured himself of a 12th consecutive year in which he has won at least one ATP title.