Roger Federer claimed his sixth and last ATP Finals crown in 2011. Roger toppled Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-3, 6-7, 6-3 in two hours and 19 minutes and passed Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras, who stayed on five ATP Finals trophies. Also, Roger became the fourth player in the Open era with 70 ATP titles after Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl and John McEnroe.
Federer and Tsonga met for the third straight Sunday, which is very unusual. They faced each other for the eighth time that season and set another record. Fifteen days earlier, the Swiss and the Frenchman competed in the Paris Masters final, with Roger winning 6-1, 7-6.
Seven days later, they opened the ATP Finals round-robin action, and Federer prevailed 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 for a winning start. They both passed the round-robin stage and reached the final to set another entertaining encounter. Despite losing a set in the final, Roger had the upper hand.
He played better on serve and return and got broken once from three chances offered to Tsonga. Jo-Wilfried gave his best to stay in touch. He fended off six out of nine break chances and stole Roger’s serve in the second set’s tenth game when the Swiss served for the title.
The Frenchman saved a match point in the tie break to force a deciding set before dropping serve once to finish on the losing side. Tsonga had more winners and more unforced errors, losing the edge in the shortest and mid-range rallies to grab 14 points less than his rival.
As was expected, it was a heavyweight contest between two of the finest indoor players on the Tour. They held without trouble in the encounter’s first seven games. That all changed in the eighth game when Roger hit three good backhands down the line to create three break chances.
The Swiss earned a break at love thanks to Tsonga’s colossal volley error at the net. Federer closed the set after two deuces in game nine when he forced a mistake from his opponent, clinching the opener 6-3 in 35 minutes and hoping for more in the rest of the encounter.
Jo-Wilfried had to dig deep in the second set’s third game. He repelled two break opportunities with aces to remain on the positive side. Roger got the break at 2-2 with a forehand return winner that pushed him in front. The Swiss increased the advantage with a commanding hold in game six and marched toward the finish line and title.
Roger Federer claimed his sixth ATP Finals crown in 2011.
Tsonga lost the ground completely in the last 15 minutes and played against another break point in game seven. He erased it with a backhand drop shot winner and brought it home with two service winners to reduce his deficit to 4-3.
Roger was pushing strong for another big step toward the title when he held in game eight, forcing Tsonga to serve to stay in the match. Jo-Wilfried did an excellent job but had to score a break if he wanted to prolong the encounter.
It was not an easy task after creating no break chances since the beginning of the clash! Suddenly, he found himself 40-0 in front and converted the third break chance with a smash at the net that leveled the score at 5-5.
Roger earned a break point in game 11 that could have given him the edge again. Tsonga denied it and hit a brave forehand winner to introduce a tie break. The Frenchman netted an easy forehand to send Roger 3-1 in front. The Swiss hit two winners to increase the lead to 5-2, leaving Jo-Wilfried with no room for further errors.
The lower-ranked player kept his focus and grabbed the following three points to climb back to 5-5. Roger blasted an ace to move 6-5 in front and earn the match point. Tsonga refused to surrender and hit a forehand winner to fend it off.
Jo-Wilfried fired a service winner for 7-6 and a set point. He seized it with a fantastic return to deliver the deciding set after an hour and 37 minutes. Tsonga extended the power of his groundstrokes in set number two, keeping the points on his racquet and attacking the net more than Federer.
He gained the reward in the end and kept his chances of winning the biggest title of his career alive. That wasted match point did not leave a mark on Roger, though. He served well in set number three despite struggling to find the first serve.
Federer was ready to make damage on the return at 4-3, creating a break chance after Tsonga’s huge forehand error at the net. The Frenchman closed the door with an excellent serve & volley combo and erased another break opportunity with a touchy volley winner.
Roger stayed in the game and finally converted his third break point, forcing an error from his rival to move 5-3 in front and serve for the match. Unlike the second set, Federer did nothing wrong this time around. He hit three winners for three championship points, seized the first to defend the title and conquered his record-breaking sixth ATP Finals crown.
