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Federer was denied a 10th title in the German
grasscourt tournament as Croatian Coric handed the 36-year-old
his first setback on an otherwise serene road towards defending
his Wimbledon title.
The defeat meant that Rafa Nadal will return to the top of the
world rankings on Monday.
World number 34 Coric, playing in his first grasscourt final,
showed great mental toughness and determination to fend off two
set points before clinching the opening set after 57 minutes.
Federer responded by applying further pressure on Coric's serve
in the second set before converting a break point in the eighth
game to force a decider.
The 21-year-old then broke Federer in the sixth game of the
final set when the Swiss sliced a backhand long, before claiming
only his second ATP title.
It was Federer's first defeat on grass since a second-round loss
to German Tommy Haas at Stuttgart in June last year.
He also remains two matches away from matching Jimmy Connors'
all-time record of 174 victories on the surface as he missed out
on a 99th career title.
"Many congratulations Borna for your first grass title," Federer
said in the post-match presentation. "You played a wonderful
match and deserved to win at the end."
Coric is projected to rise to a new career-high 21st in the
world rankings next week after collecting wins over the
tournament's top two seeds, Federer and Alexander Zverev.
Federer, who lifted the Stuttgart title last week, will be
bidding for a record-extending ninth men's singles crown at
Wimbledon, which begins on July 2.
(Reporting by Hardik Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Ian Chadband)
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