Switzerland’s Roger Federer with the trophy after his victory over Frenchman Richard Gasquet at the Hamburg Masters on Sunday. Federer won 6-3, 7-5, 7-6. (Reuters)

Hamburg: Switzerland’s Roger Federer retained his Hamburg Masters title with a comprehensive 6-3, 7-5, 7-6 victory over French teenager Richard Gasquet on Sunday.

The world No. 1’s win avenged his defeat by the 18-year-old in the quarter finals of the Monte Carlo Masters last month, one of only two losses Federer has suffered in his last 59 matches.

The top seed was never at his best but Gasquet, ranked 56, failed to convert his break points when they came as Federer secured his 19th consecutive victory in an ATP final.

The win, wrapped up 7-4 in the third-set tiebreak, completed a highly satisfactory warm-up for Federer a week before he bids to win the French Open claycourt grand slam for the first time.

He did not drop a set all week and earned 340,000 euros ($436,800) for winning his third Hamburg title in four years.

Federer has made a habit of starting his matches slowly this week but was quickly 3-0 up at the Rothenbaum against Gasquet, albeit with the help of a forehand smash net-cord on break point.

Errors flowed as freely as winners from his racket after that and he saved three break points at 4-2 before serving out the first set.

Gasquet, playing in his second ATP tour final, was on top for much of the second set but squandered two more break point chances and paid a heavy price.

Federer broke to love to lead 6-5 after an untimely stream of Gasquet mis-hits and in the next game the Swiss classily wrong-footed the teenager with an ace to go two sets up.

Federer missed last week’s Rome Masters with strained foot ligaments and he needed to adjust the strapping on his left foot before the start of set three.

It proved breakless but Gasquet lost the initiative in the tiebreak with a double-fault.

The teenager had saved three match points before winning their quarter final in Monte Carlo but this time Federer took his first opportunity when Gasquet overhit a return to hand victory to the Swiss, who raised his arms skyward in triumph.

Gasquet’s consolation was that he will break into the top 50 for the first time in Monday’s rankings.

The last time Federer lost an ATP final was to Czech Jiri Novak at Gstaad in 2003. Russian Marat Safin, who knocked Federer out of the Australian Open semi-finals in January, is the only other player to have beaten him since the start of the US Open last year.