4 tournaments where Roger Federer has never lost a match
During the course of his illustrious 22-year professional career, Roger Federer has carved out a plethora of records in the sport of tennis.
Federer has the most Grand Slam titles (20), ATP Finals titles (6), most weeks at no. 1 - consecutive as well as overall - and most wins over Top-10 opposition.
Federer also became the oldest winner of a Masters 1000 title when he beat defending champion John Isner in the 2019 Miami final at the age of 37.
Federer narrowly missed out on becoming the oldest player to win a Grand Slam title when he squandered multiple championship points in a pulsating 2019 Wimbledon final against Novak Djokovic.
Also read: 8 tournaments where Federer has had the most missed opportunities.
In a testament to his sustained excellence and longevity, Federer is the oldest player to successfully defend a Grand Slam title (2018 Australian Open) and the only player in the history of the game to win 10 titles in a tournament on two different surfaces (Halle - grass, Basel - hardcourt).
During the course of his career, Federer has appeared in 50 different tournaments - disregarding team events like the Davis Cup and the Laver Cup - and has reached the title match in 35 of them.
On that note, let us take a look at 4 tournaments where Federer has never lost a match:
#1: Munich - 5 wins in 5 matches
In his only appearance at the Munich Open in 2003, Federer breezed through the draw without dropping a set.
The then 21-year-old Swiss respectively saw off Zeljko Krajan, Raemon Sluiter, Mikhail Youzhny, Stefan Koubek, and Jarkko Nieminen without the loss of a set to win the second of his 11 career singles titles on clay.
It was the third of five titles Federer won in the season before making his Major breakthrough on the grass courts of Wimbledon.
Also read: Was Federer of the 2000s more dominant than Djokovic of the 2010s?
#2: Bangkok - 10 wins in 10 matches
In his first appearance in Bangkok in 2004, Federer beat Nicolas Thomann, Ivo Hueberger, and Robin Soderling in straight sets before dropping his only set of the tournament against local hope Paradorn Srichaphan. In the final, Federer beat American Andy Roddick in straight sets to win his 10th title of the season.
A dominant Federer returned to the tournament the next year and saw off Marcos Daniel, Denis Gremelmayr, Gilles Muller, Jarkko Nieminen, and a certain Andy Murray - all in straight sets to extend his perfect record at the Bangkok Open to 10-0.
Federer's win over then-109th ranked Andy Murray remains the lowest-ranked player he has faced in a tournament final.
#3: Tokyo - 5 wins in 5 matches
A dominant world no. 1, Federer, at the peak of his powers, dropped his only set at the 2006 Tokyo Open against local hope Takao Suzuki in the quarterfinals, either side of straight-set wins over Viktor Troicki, Wesley Moodie, Benjamin Becker and Tim Henman.
It was the 9th title of Federer's most successful season in terms of titles won (12). Following his Tokyo triumph, the 20-time Grand Slam champion would go on to lift titles at the Madrid Masters, Halle, and the ATP Finals - then called the Tennis Masters Cup.
#4: Istanbul - 4 wins in 4 matches
In his only competitive appearance on Turkish soil, Federer beat Jarkko Nieminen, Daniel Gimeno Traver, Diego Schwartzman, and Pablo Cuevas to win the 11th and most recent clay court singles title of his illustrious career.
The win over Finland's Jarkko Nieminen in the opening round was Federer's 200th match win on the red dirt.
Also read: 3 milestones Federer could achieve in 2020.