Title number eight in

clocking returns and serves at will,” said the Swiss. “He was doing a great job. Just the way he was playing. He was confident and feeling it and seeing it. At that stage of the competition, late in a tournament, it was definitely very, very impressive.

“If you give Marin time on the ball, he can finish points nicely. The court is still playing quite fast. It helps on my serve, but it also helps him. I’m sure it’s going to be a close match.”

Federer has not won multiple grand slam titles in a season since 2009 but has rolled back the years through 2017.

A month short of his 36th birthday, Federer has lost just two matches this season, sensationally winning the Australian Open and then following up with Masters titles in Indian Wells and Miami.

After taking the second half of last year off to fully recuperate from knee surgery, Federer had always hoped he would be back to his best on grass.

“The Australian Open was such an unbelievable surprise to me,” he said. “Then to back it up in Indian Wells and Miami, that part I couldn’t believe, that I was able to sustain a great level.

“The first three, four months were just like a dream really. So this is something I was working towards, Wimbledon, to be in good shape. I’m happy it’s paying off.”

Cilic knows he has his work well and truly cut out, saying: “Obviously they set the bar really high at most of the grand slams, but this one especially.

“Definitely it’s great for me to be in the final of a grand slam again. I’ve felt that my level of tennis in the last several weeks is really on a high level, and that has given me a lot of consistency with my mindset.

“But still it’s a final. It’s never easy to deal with it. You never know how your emotions are going to be when you enter that Centre Court.

“I’m believing that I have the ability and that I have a good game and I played really well during the tournament. That is obviously very important in giving me a lot of confidence to prepare for this final.”