Rafael Nadal warmed-up for his French Open title defence in style when he ousted a demoralized Roger Federer as Hamburg Masters champion winning the final 7-5, 6-7 (3/7), 6-3 here on Sunday.In a rematch of the 2007 title clash, which was won by Federer, triple Roland Garros champion Nadal showed a determined fighting spirit with a superb array of shots to claim victory after 2 hours 52 minutes.
It was the Spaniard's tenth win over Federer - his eighth on clay. It also ended the Swiss world number one's 41-match unbeaten run on German soil.
Since Federer's previous defeat in Germany - to Mark Philippoussis here in 2003 - he had won seven straight German tournaments: three in Hamburg on clay and four in Halle on grass.
It left Nadal with 108 wins on clay from 110 matches since April 2005 and reinforced his position as the overwhelming favourite to win a fourth consecutive Roland Garros, which starts on May 25, and where he is unbeaten after 21 matches.
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