Well over a decade into his career, Roger Federer has achieved the rare sort of successes that surpass even childhood dreams.

''When I was a kid I wasn't thinking of winning five Cincinnatis,'' Federer said after his semi-final win on Saturday over his Swiss compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka. ''But then again, here I am in this great situation being able to do it - the first man ever.''

Federer followed through on Sunday, winning the Cincinnati Masters for the fifth time with a breezy, and then bruising, 6-0, 7-6 (9-7) victory over Novak Djokovic of Serbia.

In the women's final, Li Na of China came from being down a set and a break to defeat Angelique Kerber, of Germany, reeling off nine straight games in the middle of the match on her way to a 1-6, 6-3, 6-1 victory.

Federer, 31, bullied his way to his third Masters 1000 of the year with a nearly untouchable serve, which rarely surpassed 210 kilometres an hour but hit corners and lines consistently.

He became the first player to win a tournament of this level without ever having his serve broken. He did not face a single break point in the final and faced only three in the tournament.

Djokovic had not been broken, either, in his four matches in the tournament going into the final. But he was broken by Federer in the opening game of the match and then twice more en route to losing the set, 6-0, in just 20 minutes. ''I was hoping for a good start - but not like that,'' Federer said. ''I'll take it.''

The crowd, which was in Federer's favour at the outset, turned their attention to Djokovic, hoping to propel him into competitive form.

And when Djokovic held serve to open the second set, the crowd roared in relief, causing Djokovic to break into a toothy grin as he walked to his chair for the changeover.

The players traded holds throughout the second set, often with ease, as they sprinted towards a second-set tie-breaker. In what looked to be a tight final between the Association of Tennis Professionals' No.1 and No.2, only one of the 18 games in the match even reached deuce.

But the tie-breaker made up for the lack of drama in the preceding stages of the match, as Federer raced out to a 3-0 lead before Djokovic reeled off four straight points to take the lead.

After saving a set point for Djokovic at 6-7 in the tie-breaker with an overhead smash, Federer sealed the title on his second match point with a crosscourt shot from the front of the court, knocking it away for a clean winner and raising his arms above his head in triumph.

It was Federer's 21st title at a Masters 1000 tournament, tying the absent Rafael Nadal for the most in a career.
Djokovic downplayed the result's bearing on the upcoming US Open, the final grand slam event of the year.
''The conditions here are quite different from [the] US Open,'' he said of the courts.

''It's a bit slower there, which I think goes in my favour a little bit more.''
Djokovic, the reigning US Open champion, said: ''I have made more than I expected after Olympic Games. I lost only one match in two weeks on two 1000 events, which is great success. So I'm actually feeling good about myself at this moment. I really look forward to New York.''

Meanwhile, China’s Li Na ended her 15-month title drought as she beat Germany’s Angelique Kerber 1-6, 6-3, 6-1 to win the Cincinnati Masters tennis event. The 2011 French Open champion overcame an early setback to clinch a superb victory Sunday as she won 80 percent of her first-serve points in the third set, Xinhua reports.

“I wanted to win this title because this year I got in the final three times but could not cross the last hurdle. I was really hungry for this win,” said Li Na.