 Federer started his season at the Brisbane International . He defeated <unk> Raonic in the final , thereby becoming only the third man in the Open Era to have 1000 or more wins , joining Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl , as well as the first man in the Open Era to win at least one title in each of 15 consecutive years . In Dubai , Federer successfully defended his title with a straight @-@ set victory over Novak Djokovic in the final , marking his seventh title at the tournament and , after Wimbledon and Halle , was the third time he had won seven or more titles in a tournament . In addition , Federer became the fourth person since 1991 to surpass 9 @,@ 000 career <unk> . In March , he reached the final of the Indian Wells , but lost in three sets to defending champion Djokovic . 
