Federer battles past Simon to reach Swiss Indoors semi-finals

Basel (Switzerland) : Top-seeded Roger Federer edged Frenchman Gilles Simon 7-6 (7-1), 4-6, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals of the Swiss Indoors, a hard-court Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) tournament.

Federer, an eight-time winner of his hometown event, was far from his best but managed to come back from a break down to win the first set in a tiebreaker on Friday.

After dropping the second set, the world No. 3 grabbed a break of serve early in the decider only to hand it back with a sloppy service game of his own, reports Efe news.

But with Simon serving at 4-5, the Swiss great broke the Frenchman's serve for the fifth time in the match to secure the victory in two hours and 34 minutes.

Despite the win, Federer will be displeased with himself for dropping his own serve on five occasions, including three times in the second set.