(CNN) -- In Roger Federer's last tournament, he lost at the U.S. Open to a player he had beaten 10 straight times. Federer returned to the singles court at the Shanghai Masters on Wednesday and in defeating Andreas Seppi, ensured that another long winning streak didn't come to an end. Whereas Federer was upset by Tommy Robredo in New York five weeks ago, he improved to 10-0 against Seppi by downing the Italian 6-4 6-3. Having dipped to seventh in the rankings, Federer needs wins to ensure his participation at the year-end championships in London in November. He has appeared at the marquee event every year since 2002.
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Roger Federer wins his first singles match since the U.S. Open by beating Andreas Seppi
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Federer defeats Seppi 6-4 6-3 in Shanghai to boost his record to 10-0 against the Italian
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Federer needs victories because he hasn't qualified for the World Tour Finals
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Wimbledon champion Andy Murray withdraws from the year-end championships
Federer hasn't dwelled on his defeat to @placeholder -- he told reporters this week he didn't want to think too much about it -- and is already looking forward to a "great" 2014 to dampen any talk of retirement.