federer nadal
Swiss-born Roger Federer (left) edged Rafael Nadal on what basically was his home court of Basel. Getty

For the first time in more than three years, Roger Federer got the better of Rafael Nadal, as the Basel-born star won the Swiss Indoor final on what can basically be described as his "home court" on Sunday, 6-3 5-7 6-3. The victory marks the seventh time Federer has won the tournament.

It was an important win for Federer in his home town. The 34-year-old was able to outlast Nadal in a match that lasted over two hours, finishing with 12 aces and 44 winners, while converting three of seven break points. He was also able to snap a five-match losing streak to the Spaniard.

"It was one of my best weeks in Basel, considering everything I've done throughout my career here," Federer told reporters.

"I thought the match was close. I had my chances in the second, but he fought back well, like he's done throughout the week really. Overall I was really happy how I played and it was a very special day."

For Nadal, reaching the final of a hard-court tournament and playing three sets against the No. 3 player in the world on his home court can be seen as a moral victory. Nadal has struggled in 2015, and may be making the right strides to have an improved run in 2016.

"My goal is to get back to my level and be competitive against the top players again and today I was very competitive against one of the best players in the world," said Nadal. "The match wasn't far away from me. He played well and I played well too. The match was very close to win, but I think he served very well in the third. I want to congratulate him for the victory and I had a lot of quality things in my game and mental side to take away from the week."

Nadal still owns the head-to-head record over Federer, 23-11.

Both Federer and Nadal will compete in the Paris Masters next week.

Roger Federer vs Rafael Nadal (2-1) (ATP Basel...by jackeddine