New number one Federer revels in 'unbelievable' week

Rotterdam, February 19: Roger Federer said he will never forget an "unbelievable" week, which he ended by winning the Rotterdam Open after securing top spot in the ATP rankings.

The 36-year-old's quarter-final victory over Robin Haase on Friday (February 16) ensured he will become the oldest man to be world number one and he eased to a 6-2 6-2 victory over Grigor Dimitrov on Sunday (February 18) to maintain his perfect record this season.

Federer now has an astonishing 97 career titles to his name and was on cloud nine after taking less than an hour to see off Dimitrov, a success which means he will remain the top-ranked player going into BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells.

"It's definitely one of those weeks I will never forget in my life," said the Swiss maestro. "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."

Perfectionist Federer revealed that nerves set in with the opportunity to take Rafael Nadal's world number one status off him in the Netherlands.

"I played a great first match and a great last match," the 20-time grand slam champion added. "In between it was a battle and nerve-wracking, getting back to world number one and managing my expectations and my nerves as well.

"I was able to handle the pressure and today I played great from the beginning. I pushed forward and I'm very proud that I could win here in Rotterdam."

Source: OPTA