The World No. 1 and nine-time Halle champion, Roger Federer, is through to the final again courtesy of his win over Denis Kudla of Ukraine on Sunday.
The pair, Federer and Kudla, had met once before at Cincinnati in 2012, where Federer prevailed in straight sets 6-4 and 6-1.
Last Sunday, Federer regained the No.1 ranking and won the Stuttgart title on return from sabbatical, which saw him skip the entire clay session for the second year in succession.
With his win over Kudla, Federer has extended his winning streak on grass to 20 matches. Furthermore, the maestro is just three wins away from breaking Jimmy Connor’s all-time record of 174 wins on grass.
If we take a closer look, Federer’s winning percentage on grass is relatively better than Connor with his 172 wins to 23 loses compared to Jimmy’s 174-34.
Although there is a one week break between Wimbledon and Halle, playing two consecutive tournaments prior to Wimbledon might wear him out. “I hope I can take this form along to Wimbledon and stay injury in the meantime,” he told the reporters.
Federer is bidding for record extending 10th title at Halle, which will be his 99th title overall. He will face 21-years-old Borna Coric, 34th ranked, in the final. Coric made to it to the finals after playing 5 games in his semifinal match as his opponent Batista Agut was forced to retire after an unfortunate slip.
Though the head-to-head between two is in favor of Federer 2:0. However, we can gauge Coric’s current form by looking at his clinical win over World No 3 Alexander Zevrev earlier this week and making it to the finals without dropping a set. He can definitely give Federer a run for his money.