A stunning straight-sets victory saw Roger Federer retain his Western and Southern Open title at the expense of Novak Djokovic on Sunday.
The duo, who boast 26 grand slam triumphs between them, met for the 41st time in their careers. Federer's 7-6 (7-1), 6-3 win was his 21st over Djokovic, breaking the head-to-head impasse.
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The Swiss star came off the back of some characteristically stylish strokes, with his trademark one-handed backhand in full flow in the heat of Cincinnati.
Federer was aggressive from the onset and scored break points in Djokovic's second and third service games, but the Serbian held firm and ultimately forced a tiebreak. It was there that Federer really hit top gear, outsmarting the world No. 1 and finding the lines with remarkable regularity.
Djokovic only won one point as Federer marched into a one-set lead and the writing was on the wall at the start of the second.
Federer broke serve at the first opportunity as Djokovic, who needed three sets to defeat Alexandr Dolgopolov in the semifinals, failed to find his rhythm.
Indeed, he struggled to get close to Federer's serve, holding to love for a 3-0 lead as the winning post came into view.
Further break-point openings were carved out by the sixth game, but Djokovic held after winning a handful of lengthy rallies.
Despite surviving that scare, there was to be no reprieve for Djokovic as the remainder of the set went on serve and Federer wrapped up his seventh Western and Southern Open title.