DUBAI: Add a century of career titles to Roger Federer's staggering list of achievements in tennis.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion became the second male tennis player to win 100 tour-level tournament titles in the professional era when he beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4, 6-4 in the final of the Dubai Championships on Saturday.
Jimmy Connors is the other male player to reach the milestone, and the American ended his career on 109 titles.
By beating a player nearly half his age in just 69 minutes, the 37-year-old Federer continued his record of winning at least one title every season since his first in 2001 in Milan — when he was 19.
Eight of his victories have come in Dubai.
"It's an absolute dream come true right now," Federer said on the court.
As well as his record haul of Grand Slam titles, which includes a record eight wins at Wimbledon, Federer has won a record six ATP Finals titles and topped the rankings for a record 310 weeks — including 237 straight.
In a battle of the generations, Federer partially avenged his loss to the 20-year-old Tsitsipas, a rising star from Greece, in the last 16 of the Australian Open in January.
Federer broke serve in the first game and took the first set on his fourth set point.
The second set was more even, but Tsitsipas made the first big mistake in dumping an easy shot into the net to loose serve for 5-4. Federer held serve to love to join Connors in the century club.
Roger Federer wins in Dubai to claim 100th career title
Roger Federer wins in Dubai to claim 100th career title
Desert Vipers chief urges side to focus on playoff, not ILT20 trophy
- The Vipers, the most successful team this season with eight wins from 10 matches, take on the Emirates knowing the winner will secure a direct place in the final
DUBAI: The Desert Vipers’ director of cricket, Tom Moody, has urged his side to focus on the immediate challenge of Qualifier 1 against MI Emirates on Tuesday rather than lifting the DP World ILT20 trophy.
Speaking on the Vipers Voices podcast on Monday, Moody said: “You do not look at the prize, as simple as that. Yes, we all want to be successful. Yes, we all want to win trophies, but if you get too obsessed with that mission, you end up falling short.”
The Vipers, the most successful team this season with eight wins from 10 matches, take on the Emirates knowing the winner will secure a direct place in the final.
Moody, a former World Cup winner with Australia, stressed the importance of approaching the game positively and executing a perfect performance with bat, ball and in the field.
“If we just take that positive outlook and draw on the experience we have had, concentrate on just trying to put together our perfect game, we should be in good hands,” he said.
Moody acknowledged the strength of MI Emirates, led by Kieron Pollard, and highlighted the challenge of playing at Abu Dhabi, where the opposition is familiar with the conditions.
“They play most of their games there, so that is an advantage for them. But at the end of the day, you are not really playing the opposition; you are playing the ball,” he added.
Reflecting on the Vipers’ season, Moody said five of their eight league wins came in the final over, giving the team experience under pressure.
“It gives important lessons for the team and builds trust within the playing group,” he said.
He also addressed the impact of the cooler conditions in the UAE and dew on the finals series, saying the team must adapt regardless of the toss.
“From my perspective, the mindset we need to share is that it does not matter. We just need to adapt,” he said.
