Federer eases past Dimitrov to 97th tour title

Roger Federer needed just 55 minutes to see off Grigor Dimitrov and claim the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament title in Rotterdam.

The Swiss, who earlier this week confirmed his return to the top of the ATP world rankings at the age of 36, breezed past his Bulgarian opponent 6-2 6-2 on the way to his 97th tour-level trophy.

Federer told www.atpworldtour.com: “It’s definitely one of those weeks I will never forget in my life. It’s unbelievable to get my 97th title and get back to world number one. It’s very special.

“I was expecting it to be tough today. Grigor is a great player and a great athlete and he’s been playing super well in recent months.

“I thought that this wasn’t going to be the result, but he looked to be struggling a bit and I never looked back. I was able to execute my tennis the way I wanted to. I’m very happy.”

Federer, who had previously won in the Dutch city in 2005 and 2012, assumed control after breaking in the fifth game in front of King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands as Dimitrov made 13 unforced errors in the first set.

Dimitrov, who had not dropped a set on his way to the final, was far from at his best, but left with a cheque for 196,875 Euros, or £174,228.