WIMBLEDON
FEDERER
Switzerland’s Roger Federer kisses the trophy after his men’s singles final victory over Britain’s Andy Murray at Wimbledon. The win was his record-tying seventh at the tournament.
LONDON — There were going to be tears at the end of this Wimbledon men’s final, because both Roger Federer and Andy Murray have some precedent there.
In the end, they came from the winner and the runnerup
Federer’s tears began almost before he fell to the court in triumph, tears of joy and relief as he won his seventh career title at Wimbledon, the 17th major of his career, the first in 2 1/2 years.
Murray’s tears came when he took the microphone in most honourable defeat, as he tried to put into words what the wholehearted backing of a nation of championship-starved tennis fans meant to him, and how desperately he tried to give them what they wanted.
He knew, before taking the microphone, that he would struggle. At first, he didn’t want to do it.
In the end, the 25-year-old from Dunblane, Scotland revealed himself to a country that wants so much to like him, but can’t quite figure out what to make of him. It was a moment that may forever alter the public’s rather inaccurate perception of him.
He was emotional. He was funny. And he was sincere.
“Everybody always talks about the pressure of playing here, how tough it is. But it’s not the people watching; they make it so much easier to play,” Murray said. “The support has been incredible, so thank you.”
Federer has been there; the moments after he lost the 2009 Australian Open to Rafael Nadal, when he was so overcome and Nadal put his arm around him to comfort him, are some of the signature moments of this final phase of his career.
He knew just what to say, and he was able to make Murray laugh. And he said he sincerely believes Murray will win Grand Slam titles, and not just one.
“I told him it’s supposed to be easier, this part, than playing the match. It’s hard. I mean, I’ve been there, as well,” Federer said. “I see him every day. I see him, what he goes through on a daily basis on tour. At Wimbledon I think he handles it so perfectly, to be quite honest.”
For Federer, this was the sweetest homecoming he could ask for.
Written off by some as a major title contender some years ago as he grew older, his younger rivals got ferociously better and the game he had mastered so brilliantly morphed into much more of a war of physical attrition, it always seemed as though everything had to fall into place to add to his Grand Slam trophy case.
This Wimbledon was serendipitous for the 30-yearold from Switzerland. Even the timing of the rain during Sunday’s final, which required the closing of the now-notorious roof for the ninth time in the tournament, was ideal.
Federer came out extremely nervous in the first set and said that with the wind, he was playing the elements more than the opponent.
At 1-1 in the third set, they closed the roof. The new conditions allowed Federer to let his game flow.
The circumstances turned this into the first indoor final in Wimbledon’s storied history. Federer, as Murray pointed out later, has not lost indoors since 2010.
“I was getting asked the other day, after I won my semifinal, ‘Is this your best chance? Roger’s 30 now,’” Murray said. “He’s not bad for a 30-year-old.
The fact that Murray was unable to convert so many break points in the second set and carve out a two-set lead was a factor.
Then, there is Federer’s history at Wimbledon, and Murray’s lack of it.
It almost seemed as though the listing Good Ship Tennis was righted, at least for one day.
In victory, tennis fans rediscovered the old Roger Federer, Wimbledon champion and, as of Monday, once again the No. 1-ranked player in the world.
The seventh title ties him with his idol Pete Sampras. And this time, Federer’s twin daughters Myla and Charlene were on hand for this triumph.