Federer defeated Nishikori and aims for the semifinals of the London Masters.

The Swiss Roger Federer added today his third victory in the current edition of the Masters of London by defeating a courageous Kei Nishikori by 7-5, 4-6 and 6-4, in two hours and ten minutes, and secured the first position in the 'Stan Smith' group.

Roger Federer, 34 years old, who is seeking his seventh trophy in the British capital, struggled against Nishikori who managed to take a set, the first one he lost in the tournament.

Thus, the Swiss closes a flawless group stage, in which, in addition to the Japanese player, he also defeated the Czech Tomas Berdych (6-4 and 6-2) and the world number one, the Serbian Novak Djokovic (7-5 and 6-2).

In the semifinals, the tennis player from Basel, who mathematically secured the first position in the group, is already waiting for the second classified from the 'Ilie Nastase' group, which will be determined tomorrow in the duel between Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka.

The first set of the match, played in a packed O2 arena, lasted 48 minutes and could have gone either way. In the eighth game, Nishikori, with his serve, had a point to go up 5-3, but Federer managed to break him and win the game and subsequently the fiercely contested first set by 7-5.

The Swiss player started the second set with momentum against a Nishikori who appeared to have been affected by the first set. Federer quickly established a comfortable lead of 4-1, but the Japanese player made a comeback, and after winning five consecutive games, he ended up winning the set by 6-4 in just over 35 minutes.

In the third and decisive set, the story of the first set was about to repeat itself: clear dominance by Federer (4-1) and an unthinkable comeback by Nishikori.

However, this time the Swiss player did not fail, and for the seventh time in 14 Masters tournaments, he concludes his group undefeated, and ultimately secured a victory that guarantees him the first position in his group.