Mercedes Cup 2016 Results: Wednesday Tennis Scores, Latest Schedule

Roger Federer made a positive return to the ATP World Tour on Wednesday after he took a 4-3 lead in the first set of his clash against Taylor Fritz at the 2016 Mercedes Cup before rain suspended play in Stuttgart, Germany. 

Fritz held a good account of his abilities in the early exchanges and even managed to keep his Swiss foe at distance before Federer broke serve to take a 4-3 advantage into Thursday's resumption of play.

Federer or Fritz will face Florian Mayer in the next round of the tournament, as the German clinched a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 win over compatriot Michael Berrer. Marin Cilic faces Radek Stepanek on Thursday to find out who will take on Philipp Kohlschreiber in the quarter-finals. 

Read on for a roundup of Wednesday's results as the wet weather continued to have an impact on the ATP World Tour in Stuttgart.

Fixture	Result
Florian Mayer def. Michael Berrer	6-3, 3-6, 6-4
Philipp Kohlschreiber def. Denis Kudla	7-5, 6-3
Roger Federer vs. Taylor Fritz
Marin Cilic vs. Radek Stepanek

Recap

The adverse conditions in Germany meant Federer and Fritz weren't even able to see out a full set before rain suspended play, and the former made a timely break to gain the upper hand before time was called.

It's been a month since the former world No. 1 announced he wouldn't take part in the 2016 French Open due to injury, and he took to Twitter with a jolly attitude despite Wednesday's stumble:

It was particularly disappointing for Fritz to concede the first break of the match with a double-fault in the seventh game, and the American is now at odds to turn the tide on Thursday.

After beating Fabrice Martin in the first round to set up a second-round meeting with Federer, Fritz spoke of how it would feel to face one of his idols, per the official ATP World Tour website:

"

It's amazing being able to play the next round, because growing up, Federer was the guy that nobody could beat. I grew up in that generation of him just dominating, so it's crazy now to be stepping on the court with him.

I remember I was in fifth grade in my computer class. We were supposed to be doing some kind of assignment and I was live streaming the US Open final, Federer versus Del Potro. Sitting there then, I never thought that at the same tournament I'd be playing against Federer...

"

To Fritz's credit, the occasion didn't appear to rattle the 18-year-old, but he'll need to show a bit more style if he's to get the better of Federer when play resumes.

The reward for victory will be a quarter-final matchup opposite Mayer, who defeated Berrer over three sets and has already taken out a big name in Stuttgart in the shape of Viktor Troicki.

Mayer showed some signs of a mid-match lull and dropped serve twice in the second set, but those were the only games dropped on his own serve, as he bookended a comfortable win against his countryman.

Kohlschreiber's straight-sets win over Denis Kudla was altogether more rudimentary for the home favourite, who will take on either second seed Cilic or the veteran Stepanek in the next phase of the competition.