Henman in Swiss triumph

Henman takes control against Federer

Tim Henman (GB) bt Roger Federer (Swi) 6-3 6-4 6-2

Britain's Tim Henman lifted the Swiss Indoor Open title with a hugely impressive final victory over home favourite Roger Federer.

Second seed Henman shrugged off the partisan support for his opponent in Basle and served superbly to win in straight sets.

It was the Briton's first tournament victory since Copenhagen in February and his eighth career ATP title.

Winning twice here is very, very special to me - I'll be back

Tim Henman

And the win moves him a step closer to qualifying for the lucrative end-of-season Masters Cup in Sydney.

Henman secured an initial break against Federer in the sixth game of the first set, which he went on to take 6-3.

A series of dazzling returns, combined with an 80% first-serve success rate, helped Henman clinch the second set 6-4.

Fourth seed Federer, defeated by Henman in the 2001 Wimbledon quarter-final, tried to fight back.

But he was broken in the third and fifth games of the second set as Henman sealed the win 6-2.

Henman was also crowned champion in Basle three years ago.

"Winning twice here is very, very special to me," the Briton said afterwards.

"I hope to be back here for many more years.

"All the hard work has paid off and the end result is plain to see - I'm delighted with the way I've played all week.

Federer disappointed the home fans

"My serve has felt great all week and it makes such a huge difference to my overall game.

"I mixed it up well and used both the body serve and the kick serve to great effect."

This latest success leaves Henman well placed going into the regular season's last event, the Tennis Masters Series event in Paris.

A good performance there should guarantee a place for Henman, currently 10th in the ATP Champions Race, in the Australian cup finale.

Federer had failed to beat Henman in three previous meetings.

The two faced each other in the Swiss indoor tournament in 1999, with Henman winning the quarter-final match.

But the British number one had kind words for his 21-year-old opponent afterwards.

"The Swiss people are going to have a lot of fun watching Roger over the next five to 10 years," Henman said.

"He's going to win some of the best tournaments."