Roger Federer will return to second in the world rankings after winning his seventh trophy at the Cincinnati Masters on Sunday with a 7-6 (7/1), 6-3 defeat of Novak Djokovic in the final.
The 34-year-old Swiss also secured the second seeding behind Djokovic when the US Open begins on August 31 after a comprehensive victory in 90 minutes.
Federer set up three match points with his seventh ace of a quick afternoon before claiming the trophy on the first of his chances.
The title is the 87th for the 17-time grand slam champion, who was defending the title from last year. Federer now owns 24 Masters 1000 trophies.
The victory also gives Federer a 21-20 edge over Djokovic in their career series stretching back almost a decade.
The two were playing against each other in a Cincinnati final for the third time, with Djokovic now 0-5 in title matches at the venue.
The loss denied the Serb a chance to become the first man to win all nine Masters 1000 titles over the course of a career.
