World number one Roger Federer beat Australian Open champion Marat Safin 6-4, 6-7, 6-4 to win his third consecutive Halle Open title in Halle, Germany on Sunday.
Top seed Federer, who is also going for a third successive Wimbledon title later this month, produced another masterly performance on grass, his finesse and consistency proving too much for the powerful but erratic Russian.
Federer extended his three-year winning streak on grass to 29 matches but is still well short of Bjorn Borg's record of 41 over five years in from 1976 to 1980.
Second seed Safin had beaten the Swiss in their last meeting, saving a match point in a five-set thriller in this year's Australian Open semi-finals. They had never previously met on grass.
Safin, who has been complaining of a troublesome left knee since the Indian Wells Pacific Life Open in March, was upset by controversial line calls during the match but did well to take the second set tiebreak 8-6.
Federer broke in the third game of the third set, however, and that was enough to give him victory in a high-tempo match which thrilled the spectators packed into the 12,500-seater Gerry Weber stadium.
The two players meet again in the doubles final later on Sunday, Federer partnering fellow countryman Yves Allegro and Safin playing with Sweden's Joachim Johansson.
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