Federer advances to Gerry Weber Open final

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HALLE, Germany, June 14 (UPI) -- Top-seeded Roger Federer banged out a 6-1, 6-4 win against Nicolas Keifer at Saturday's semifinals of the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany.

The win ran Federer's grass-court winning streak to 24 straight matches.

The native of Basel, Switzerland, has not lost on grass since a surprise first-round setback against Croatia's Mario Ancic at Wimbledon in 2002.

The five-time Wimbledon champion skipped the Halle event last year after capturing it four years in a row (2003-06).

"I'm happy to be back in another (Halle) final," Federer said. "It's nice to be playing well right away on grass especially."

Federer has not lost his serve in 39 games at this tournament.

In Sunday's final, his opponent will be unseeded Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany, who surprised No. 2 seed James Blake of the United States 6-3, 7-5.