Federer eyes eighth Wimbledon title against Cilic

LONDON (AP) — Much has changed for Roger Federer since he played in, and won, his first Grand Slam final at Wimbledon in 2003.

First of all, as he reminded everyone after moving into his 11th title match at the All England Club — with a shot at his eighth championship, more than any man in history — he favored a ponytail and some scruff on his cheeks way back then. Nowadays, his hair is short, his face clean shaven.

Another significant difference for Federer, whose 36th birthday is Aug. 8, making him the oldest men's finalist at Wimbledon since 1974?

"I didn't have kids running around, potentially waking me up at night," he said. "Today we've got to, like, close down the doors. Say, 'Daddy is sleeping.'"

He's a father of four: twin boys, 3; twin girls, 8 soon.

On the court, there are ways in which the Federer who faces Marin Cilic on Sunday is not the same as the Federer who beat Mark Philippoussis 14 years ago. The larger racket, for example, or the increased willingness to hit over the top on his backhand.

In truth, though, what's most important is this: Federer is still as capable as ever of beating everyone who stands in his way.

"This guy doesn't really seem (to be) getting any older or anything like that," said Tomas Berdych, who lost to Federer in the semifinals, "or slowing down at all."

That's certainly the case.

Federer is 30-2 and tied for the tour lead with four titles in 2017, including at the Australian Open in January.

During Wimbledon, he has not lost a set through six matches; the last man to earn the title without ceding a set was Bjorn Borg, 31 years ago. He's only been broken four times, saving 16 of 20 break points along the way.

"Roger is playing maybe (some) of his best tennis of his career at the moment," said Cilic, the No. 7-seeded Croatian who hit 25 aces and returned quite well during his semifinal victory over Sam Querrey. "It's going to be a huge challenge."

They have played each other seven times previously, with Federer winning six, including in last year's Wimbledon quarterfinals. Cilic took the first two sets and even was one point from victory, before Federer came back.

The lone head-to-head win for Cilic came in one of the most significant matches of his career: 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in the semifinals of the 2014 U.S. Open, where he went on to earn his only Grand Slam title.

"He knows he absolutely destroyed Roger," said Jonas Bjorkman, one of Cilic's two coaches.

That knowledge is key for this match, according to Bjorkman. So, too, is the past experience of participating in, and winning, a major final.

"He knows what it takes," Bjorkman said. "He knows how it feels to be out there, and he knows what it is to be under the pressure like that."

The 6-foot-6 (1.98meter) Cilic, who is 28, has improved since then, too. His serve is better, as are his volleys and his inclination to move to the net. Those can help on Sunday. Would also be useful if he is able to read Federer's serves as well as he did Querrey's.

Still, it's the mental side of things that matters for Cilic, according to the only Croatian man to win Wimbledon, Goran Ivanisevic.

"He needs to just believe," said Ivanisevic, the 2001 champion at the All England Club and Cilic's coach in New York three years ago. "It has nothing to do with tennis. In the end, it's all in your head."

Past history favors Federer by a wide margin.

His 11 Wimbledon finals are a record for a man at any Grand Slam tournament (no one else has played more than seven at the All England Club.)

LONDON (AP) — First there was one of the longest doubles finals in Wimbledon history. And then there was one of the shortest.

The men's final was the first match on Centre Court following the women's singles championship Saturday. Lukasz Kubot and Marcelo Melo beat Oliver Marach and Mate Pavic 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 (2), 3-6, 13-11 in a match that lasted 4 hours, 40 minutes — only 21 minutes shorter than the longest men's doubles final in history.

That was followed by the women's doubles final, which Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina won 6-0, 6-0 over Chan Hao-ching and Monica Niculescu.

The last 20 minutes of the men's final was played under a closed roof because of darkness. The entire women's match was played indoors on the Centre Court grass.

"When we stopped, we know we have to be strong at this moment," Melo said. "I played the final here before. I know I have to manage this if you want to succeed and be a Grand Slam champion."

With the win, Melo will return to the No. 1 ranking in men's doubles.

The women's doubles final began at 9:30 p.m. and lasted 55 minutes.

"We were sitting and waiting. We knew that it's going to be five sets. We knew it was going to be drama at the end. We knew it was going to be something," Vesnina said. "Martina Navratilova told us, 'Do you know you girls have to finish till 11?'

"After the first set, I looked at the clock. OK, we're still fine."

It was Makarova and Vesnina's third Grand Slam title together.