Wimbledon: Novak Djokovic beats Roger Federer in five-set spectacular final for seventh career major title
Novak Djokovic took down Roger Federer in one of the greatest finals in tennis history to win his second Wimbledon crown and seventh grand slam title on Sunday.
Djokovic dropped the first set and let a championship point slip in the fourth as Federer staged a remarkable comeback, but the new world number one held his nerve to take the five-set epic 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 7-6 (7/4), 5-7, 6-4.
| Djokovic | v | Federer |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Aces | 29 |
| 62% | 1st serves in | 69% |
| 199kph | Fastest serve | 204kph |
| 4 of 15 | Break points won | 3 of 7 |
| 68 | Winners | 75 |
| 27 | Unforced errors | 29 |
| 186 | Total points won | 180 |
It was a brilliant contest and an incredibly up-and-down decider. So much so that both players said afterwards there were points in the match they felt they were out of it.
"After losing the fourth set it wasn't easy to go on and win the fifth set, I don't know how I did it," Djokovic said.
"This is the best tournament in the world and the one I always wanted to win so to be able to compete at such a high level I am so grateful."
An emotional Djokovic dedicated the spectacular victory to his wife-to-be Jelena Ristic and their future child.
Federer was magnanimous despite a crushing defeat, having forced a decider after looking down and out at 2-5 in the fourth set.
"It was a great final. I can't believe I made it to five, it wasn't looking good for a while," Federer said, having reached his ninth final.
"Going into a match with Novak, you know it's going to be tough. I can only say congratulations to him. It was an amazing match and an amazing tournament. It's well-deserved."
The first set was typically tight with neither player dropping serve, but Djokovic had an opening in the 10th game.
Djokovic's path to the final
(x denotes seeding)- 1st rd: bt Andrey Golubev (KAZ) 6-0, 6-1, 6-4
- 2nd rd: bt Radek Stepanek (CZE) 6-4, 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 7-6 (7/5)
- 3rd rd: bt Gilles Simon (FRA) 6-4, 6-2, 6-4
- 4th rd: bt Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA x14) 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5)
- QF: bt Marin Cilic (CRO x26) 6-1, 3-6, 6-7 (4/7), 6-2, 6-2
- SF: bt Grigor Dimitrov (BUL) 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7/2), 7-6 (9/7)
- F: bt Roger Federer (SUI x4) 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 7-6 (7/4), 5-7, 6-4
Up 4-5 and 15-30, it took two brilliant defensive points in a row from Federer to regain the ascendancy in the game and make it 5-5.
Djokovic kept things on serve before a Federer drop shot at 30-15 in the next game dribbled over after catching the net chord, sending the first set to a tiebreak.
The Swiss jumped out to an early 3-0 lead but Djokovic fought back to have set points at 6-5 and 7-6, but his first serve abandoned him and Federer struck with typical precision.
He won the next three points to take the set in 51 minutes - just four minutes shorter than the time it took Petra Kvitova to dispatch Eugenie Bouchard in the women's final.
With a rare look at a break point in the first game of the second set, Djokovic's forehand caught the tape and flew long, prompting the Serb to appeal to the heavens.
It did not work at all as he slipped on the increasingly dusty baseline and went crashing to the dirt.
Djokovic appeared to injure his left ankle in the fall and called for the trainer after serving out the next game to lead the second set 2-1.
He consolidated the break in the next game and the rest of the set remained on serve as Federer dropped just his second set of the tournament.
The third set was somehow even more tightly contested - including four consecutive aces from Federer as he won the ninth game - eventually setting up yet another tiebreak.
This time it was Djokovic with the early advantage, leading 4-2 at the change of ends before Federer fought back to 4-4 on the back of a fortunate challenge.
Any questions about Djokovic's composure were then answered as he won three straight points to take the set and a 2-1 lead.
After being neck and neck for almost two-and-a-half hours, Djokovic looked considerably better than his 32-year-old opponent in the early throes of the fourth set.
Down 2-1, Federer served up his fourth double fault to open the door slightly and last year's runner-up then flung it open, going up 0-40.
Federer immediately bounced back, producing three stellar points to get to deuce, but was battered into submission as Djokovic's deep ground strokes saw him to a break and 3-1 lead in the set.
True to the topsy-turvy nature of the epic final, Federer played his best game for almost half an hour to break back but the rampant 27-year-old immediately followed suit.
The pair went toe-to-toe in the seventh game but Djokovic had more weapons from the back of the court and moved within one game of the title.
Federer held his nerve as he stared down a championship point, and passing that hurdle seemed to flick a colossal switch, as he quickly made it 5-3.
Recent Wimbledon men's champions
- 2014: Novak Djokovic (SRB)
- 2013: Andy Murray (GBR)
- 2012: Roger Federer (SUI)
- 2011: Novak Djokovic (SRB)
- 2010: Rafael Nadal (ESP)
- 2009: Roger Federer (SUI)
- 2008: Rafael Nadal (ESP)
- 2007: Roger Federer (SUI)
- 2006: Roger Federer (SUI)
- 2005: Roger Federer (SUI)
Djokovic then had the chance to serve for the match but Federer came out of his corner swinging and got the break back before holding his nerve to level things up at 5-5.
If Federer was shining under adversity, Djokovic appeared to be wilting as he served a shocking double fault to hand over the first of three consecutive points on his serve and ultimately gave up another break and a fourth successive game.
With the set on his racket at 6-5, it was a mere formality as Federer served out the game to level it at two sets each and send it into a deciding fifth with over three hours already in the books.
Up 2-1 after three games on serve in the final set, Djokovic again called for the physio, who this time spent the medical timeout working on his right leg, but it did not seem to break Federer's concentration as he held to love.
They traded service games, before Djokovic (up 4-3) had a look at a second serve on break point.
Federer made the gutsy call to serve and volley and the return was fired in at his toes but he showed freakish touch to sneak the ball over the net, saving the point and eventually tying the set at 4-4.
Djokovic held and Federer once again faced the daunting prospect of serving to stay alive but this time it proved a bridge too far for the 17-time major champion.
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