SHANGHAI — Roger Federer defeated France's Gilles Simon 7-6 (6), 7-6 (2) to capture his fourth title of the year at the Shanghai Masters on Sunday.
The Swiss star nearly exited the tournament in his opening match when he had to save five match points against Leonardo Mayer. But he rebounded from that poor start to beat No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the semifinals and then Simon for his first title in Shanghai.
It's been a banner year for Federer despite the fact he's fallen just short at the majors. He leads the tour in match wins (61), top-10 wins (13) and final appearances (nine). On Monday, Federer will leap past Rafael Nadal to No. 2 in the rankings for the first time in more than a year.