rogerfederer.com - Third victory in Shanghai

Third victory in Shanghai

Roger has tacked on another victory in Shanghai, making it his 80th win of the year! He beat Argentina's Guillermo Coria 6-0 1-6 6-2 in his third match at the Masters Cup on Thursday.

Roger, who had already secured his place in the semi-finals, extended his winning streak to 34 matches as he seeks his third straight Masters title. Only Ilie Nastase in 1971-73 and Ivan Lendl in 1985-87 have won three in a row.

Roger inexplicably fell apart in the second set after pummelling Coria in the first. Coria had called the trainer to treat his left ankle after slipping 5-0 behind in the first set and the Argentine looked a totally different player in the second. But normal service was resumed in the third and Roger gained the decisive break to go up 4-2 before closing out the match on a Coria double-fault after one hour, 24 minutes.

Roger improved his win-loss ratio for the year to 80-3 and is now just two wins away from matching John McEnroe's professional-era record of 82-3 for a season in 1984.

He will play Fernando Gonzalez or Gaston Gaudio on Saturday.