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Top seed Roger Federer opened his quest for a 10th Halle trophy on Tuesday, defeating John Millman, 7-6 (1), 6-3, to win his grass-court season opener. The two were squaring off for the first time since the 2018 US Open, when Millman pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the tournament by upstaging the 20-time major champion in the round of 16.

Federer, coming off a semifinal showing at Roland Garros, found himself locked in a tight battle with the Australian, as neither refused to waiver on serve until arriving at a tiebreaker. There, a double fault from Millman at 1-2 provided Federer the window he needed, and he soon ran away to claim a one-set lead.

The world No. 3 earned the first break point at 3-2 in the second set, and on his second opportunity, converted when Millman framed a forehand long. Millman had one chance to break back down 3-5, before Federer hit three confident first serves to close out the match in 77 minutes.

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A win over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga would see Federer advance to the quarterfinal stage at the ATP 500 event for the 17th time in 17 appearances. Tsonga won the pair's lone meeting on grass in the 2011 Wimbledon quarterfinals when he rallied from two sets down to stun the Swiss. The 37-year-old Federer is seeking his third title of 2019, having triumphed in Dubai and Miami, and 102nd crown overall.