Murray gets the better of Federer

Tennis: Andy Murray clinched his first title of 2010 with a magnificent straights-set victory over Roger Federer in the final…

Tennis:Andy Murray clinched his first title of 2010 with a magnificent straights-set victory over Roger Federer in the final of the Toronto Masters.

The defending champion prevailed 7-5 7-5 after outlasting the former world number one in a match which was severely disrupted by two lengthy rain delays.

When the weather relented it was Murray who forced the issue, his new-found aggressive approach paying dividends against a strangely subdued Federer.

The win improves Murray's record against the Swiss ace to seven wins from their 12 meetings and also gives him an element of revenge after he was comprehensively beaten in the final of the Australian Open earlier this year.

READ MORE

It has taken the Scot some time to recover from that Melbourne setback but he has looked back to his best this week in Canada and appears in peak condition as he bids to land his first grand slam crown at the US Open which gets under way two weeks on Monday.

Murray started in electric fashion, carrying over the form which saw him sweep aside Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals.

He claimed 12 of the opening 16 points to twice break the Swiss and establish a 3-0 lead.

Federer looked shellshocked but he rallied to win back one of the breaks before finally claiming his own delivery for the first time.

Murray maintained his slender advantage to 5-4 but then threw it away as he attempted to close out the opening set.

A sloppy game culminated in a double fault as Federer drew level at 5-5.

It looked as though the momentum had swung the way of the 16-time grand slam champion but he too showed nerves by instantly opening the door for Murray.

After wasting two break points, the Scot set up a third thanks to a cheeky lob after chasing down a drop shot, Federer thrashing his attempted pass beyond the baseline.

There were no slip-ups second time round as Murray closed it out to 15 to take the opener in 59 minutes.

The second set started on serve before rain halted proceedings with Federer 2-1 up.

The players had to wait for over 40 minutes to resume and when they did just two points were possible - Murray winning them both to level it at 2-2 - before the inclement weather returned.

There was no need for the two protagonists to leave the arena this time though as the clouds soon passed overhead.

And when the action did resume it was Murray who was quickest to find his range, breaking Federer to 15 to claim a 3-2 advantage.

Frustratingly, another deluge forced the players back to the locker rooms after they shared the first four points of the sixth game of the set.

After an hour-long delay, it was Federer who came out of the blocks firing, setting up a break point which he then won after a long exchange ended when Murray put a tentative volley wide to level it at 3-all.

The match remained on serve until Murray upped the tempo to break for a 6-5 lead.

Federer threatened another comeback when he set up a break point but some big serving from Murray saw him escape the jam and he clinched the match at the second attempt - the first squandered with an ill-advised drop shot - when Federer's defensive lob drifted long.

Speaking at the post-match presentation, Murray said: "It's been one of the best weeks of my life, so thank you very much for the support the last few days.''

Addressing Federer, he said: "It's an honour to play against you.''

He added: "He's the greatest player that's ever played. It's the first time I've managed to win against Roger in a final and I'm hoping I get another chance in a few weeks at the US Open.''