Gonzalez made it tough for me, says Federer

MELBOURNE, Jan 28 (Reuters) Roger Federer admitted Fernando Gonzalez had made him work extremely hard to win the Australian Open title today.

Top seed Federer came from a break down in the first set to sink the 10th-seeded Chilean 7-6 6-4 6-4 and secure his 10th grand slam title.

''The conditions have been the same for the last couple of matches,'' Federer told a news conference.

''I had to adjust to Fernando's game. He was serving well and using a lot of slice.

''I tried to play my game, be aggressive and it ended up working. I'm just relieved that I managed to win it again.'' Federer said he had initially struggled to contain the flamboyant stroke-making of Gonzalez, who beat fifth seed James Blake and second seed Rafael Nadal in straight sets on his way to the final.

''He made it hard for me to attack him and I was missing a few shots in the first set to give him the upper hand,'' Federer said. ''Luckily, I was able to win it. I picked the right tactics in the end, played well and won a tough match.'' Federer said it could have been a very different match if Gonzalez had won the opening set, though he said he would still have been confident of winning it in the end.

''The first set could have been a turning point,'' Federer said. ''He could have taken more chances maybe.'' Federer has now won 10 of his 11 grand slam finals.

''Grand slam finals are tough, everything is on the line, there is no draw in tennis,'' he said. ''It's always tough to be an overwhelming favourite.'' REUTERS SAM KP2035