How Federer Made History In The Miami Final
How Federer Made History In The Miami Final
Roger Federer made history on Sunday in the Miami Open presented by Itau. Not only did he lift his fourth trophy at the ATP Masters 1000 event, but he set and matched several personal serving records in the process.
Federer won all but three of his service points (32/35) against 2018 champion John Isner. The Swiss has now played 154 tour-level finals, and the three points he lost on serve is the fewest he has dropped in any of those championship matches. His previous low in a final came five years ago in Basel, where he lost five service points (32/37) against David Goffin.
Fewest Service Points Lost In A Final
| Tournament | Opponent | Score | Service Points Lost |
| 2019 Miami | John Isner | 6-1, 6-4 | 3 |
| 2014 Basel | David Goffin | 6-2, 6-2 | 5 |
| 2011 Basel | Kei Nishikori | 6-1, 6-3 | 6 |
| 2008 Basel | David Nalbandian | 6-3, 6-4 | 7 |
| 2018 Rotterdam | Grigor Dimitrov | 6-2, 6-2 | 7 |
This was also just the sixth time in 1,460 tour-level matches that Federer has won 100 per cent of his first-serve points. It is the first time he has done so in a championship match. The most first-serve points Federer has won in a match without losing one of those points is 29, which he did in his lone Tokyo appearance in 2006 against retired German Benjamin Becker.
Matches Without Losing A First-Serve Point
| Tournament | Opponent | Round | Score | First-Serve Points Won |
| 2006 Tokyo | Benjamin Becker | SF | 6-3, 6-4 | 29/29 |
| 2018 Indian Wells | Jeremy Chardy | R16 | 7-5, 6-4 | 25/25 |
| 2010 Basel | Janko Tipsarevic | 2R | 6-3, 6-4 | 25/25 |
| 2017 Basel | Frances Tiafoe | 1R | 6-1, 6-3 | 21/21 |
| 2019 Miami | John Isner | FR | 6-1, 6-4 | 20/20 |
| 2014 Nitto ATP Finals | Andy Murray | RR | 6-0, 6-1 | 14/14 |
Not only was Federer’s performance impressive for a final, but it ranked among the best of his career in any round. The three service points Federer lost is tied for the fewest he has lost in any of his tour-level completed matches. He only lost three service points against Ivo Karlovic in his Miami opener in 2014. In that match, Federer played 17 more service points.
Fewest Service Points Lost In A Completed Tour-Level Match
| Tournament | Opponent | Round | Score | Service Points Lost |
| 2014 Miami | Ivo Karlovic | 2R | 6-4, 7-6 | 3/52 |
| 2019 Miami | John Isner | FR | 6-1, 6-4 | 3/35 |
| 2011 Paris | Adrian Mannarino | 2R | 6-2, 6-3 | 4/40 |
| 2013 Indian Wells | Denis Istomin | 2R | 6-2, 6-3 | 4/36 |
| 2014 Basel | Gilles Muller | 1R | 6-2, 6-1 | 4/36 |
| 2018 Rotterdam | Ruben Bemelmans | 1R | 6-1, 6-2 | 4/36 |
| 2008 Indian Wells | Nicolas Mahut | 3R | 6-1, 6-1 | 4/32 |
“I think I was very clear on how I wanted to play, so I think that helped that I was able to not just have the plan, but then being able to execute. It’s always two things: having the plan and then it not working. Of course to win every single point, things need to go your way against him,” Federer said. “So there needs to be both sides to the thing because he did have chances obviously to win some points. But apparently also on second serve I hardly dropped any points. I just can be very happy on either end, return and serve, and that’s why I’m so happy that I was able to produce a performance like this in a final.”
Editor’s Note: Service stats do not include the following: All Davis Cup (48 matches), 2000 & 2004 Olympics (8 matches) and 1999 Basel 2R vs. Alexander Popp.
Statistical assistance provided by Joshua Rey.
