Roger Federer helps Switzerland reach Hopman Cup final
Switzerland beat the United States 3-0 to advance to Saturday's final
Thursday 4 January 2018 16:48, UK
Roger Federer led Switzerland into the Hopman Cup final with another masterclass against top-10 rival Jack Sock at the mixed teams tournament in Perth on Thursday.
The world No 2 maintained an unblemished record in five clashes with the eighth-ranked Sock, beating the American in straight sets as Switzerland beat the United States 3-0 to advance to Saturday's final.
Their opponent will be decided on Friday, with Germany and Belgium the leading contenders.
Speaking after the 7-6 (7-5) 7-5 win over Sock, the 19-time Grand Slam champion said where he was uncertain heading into 2017, as he returned from a knee injury, he enters 2018 brimming with confidence.
"Yes, you could say that," he said when asked if his confidence was higher than at the same time last year. "I think I'm more secure... I was 17 in the world as well, it does make a difference.
"If I wasn't going to win a match in Australia, or win two matches, I was going to drop out of the top 30, so things were a little bit on edge last year."
Belinda Bencic's superb form continued when the world No 74 claimed her second top-20 scalp in beating CoCo Vandeweghe in straight sets, having also disposed of the 15th-ranked Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova.
Herself on the comeback trail after injury issues, the former world No 7 maintained her perfect record in singles to win 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 and was delighted to have put the Swiss into the final.
"We were so close last year," she said. "I am relieved we made it."
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