But as the afternoon waned and the Centre Court crowd approached nervous exhaustion, Djokovic mastered Federer in the final for the second year in a row and won his third Wimbledon title 7-6 (1), 6-7 (10), 6-4, 6-3.
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And with his ninth Grand Slam title, he goes clear of Andre Agassi, Ivan Lendl and Jimmy Connors, out on his own for fifth place in the Open Era list.
At the age of 33, with 17 Grand Slams, Federer would have been a hugely popular victor with the support of the Centre Court crowd, but the Swiss will have few complaints about being beaten by a better man on the final day. Federer tried to shorten them by charging the net when Djokovic gave him a chance, a strategy he employed almost 60 times.
“It would have helped tremendously to get the first set, in which he had some chances”.
“He was tough on the bigger points and at the end he was rock-solid”, Federer said. I didn’t play badly myself. “You dream of winning and as a child you dream of doing something insane when you win it, so that was it”.
Federer had given his supporters actual hope that he might overturn final yr’s last defeat by Djokovic after his lovely serving efficiency within the semi-ultimate win over Andy Murray.
Djokovic’s frustration mounted as he failed to convert two break points in the first game of the third set then, despite still struggling to stay on his feet, he saved a break point in the next game before going 2-1 up when Federer sent an errant forehand long.
Federer had his opportunities but he could only convert one of seven break points in the match and as he pressed, he committed 35 unforced errors to Djokovic’s 16. Djokovic was the more aggressive player in the last half of the match, playing more and more of his shots in front of the baseline. “He (Federer) makes you push your limits, work hard and win every single point”, 28-year-old Djokovic said on court.
Avaricious attention Set beside Federer’s magisterial style, Djokovic’s avaricious attention to the less glamorous task of returning the ball won him the match.
Record bid: Federer fell short in search of an unprecedented eighth SW19 title It can not reduce by one iota the admiration there must be for the way he set about this match.
Indeed, 15 minutes later, Djokovic regained the upper hand, breaking to lead 2-1 in the third. Sunday was just the latest highlight in a phenomenal year for him.
So Federer, and his supporters, rued letting the opening set get away, when he twice held set point.
It’s the 13th at a Grand Slam tournament; they’re tied 6-all.
“It takes a little bit of everything: recognizing the moment, having the good intuition, following your instincts of where the serve is going to go, being in the right balance”, Djokovic said.
“It’s always a great privilege playing Roger because he’s a great champion”, said the champion as he stood alongside his Swiss opponent after the trophy presentation.
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Djokovic was leading 7-6 (1), 6-7 (10), 3-2 when play was halted. He had been broken only once in the tournament before Sunday, yet Djokovic was able to do it four times in the final.
