The championship of the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters on Sunday matches World No. 2/No. 3 seed Roger Federer against wild card Mardy Fish.

Federer has won five of the previous six meetings although the American won the last encounter 6-3, 6-2 in the semi-finals of ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells in March 2008. Federer is 13-1 lifetime against Americans in finals and he is 14-2 in finals on American soil.

The 16-time Grand Slam titles leader is 1-3 in finals this year and is appearing in his 90th career ATP World Tour level final (62-27). He’s trying to avoid losing in four straight finals for the first time in his career. He’s attempting
to capture his fourth title in Cincinnati (2005, ’07, ’09) and join Mats Wilander (1983-84, ’86, ’88) as the only players in the Open Era to win four titles here. Andre Agassi and Pete Sampras also won three titles.

Fish is trying to earn his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title (0-2) and become the first unseeded champion here in the Open Era. The last wild card winner here was Boris Becker in 1985. The last American to win the Cincinnati title was Andy Roddick in 2006. Fish is 2-1 in ATP World Tour finals this season and he is 5-11 in his career.