Wimbledon 2012

SI Staff | Jul 8, 2012

Wimbledon 2012 /

Wimbledon 2012

Roger Federer

The 'Swiss Maestro' took down Andy Murray 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4 in the Wimbledon final. In earning his record-tying seventh Wimbledon title, Federer will reclaim the No. 1 ranking and match Pete Sampras' record of 286 weeks atop the rankings. Federer is now 7-1 in Wimbledon finals and furthered his own record with a world's best 17 Grand Slam titles. Here's a look at some of the best shots of Wimbledon 2012.

Serena Williams

With a 6-1, 5-7, 6-2 win over Agnieszka Radwanska, Serena won her fifth Wimbledon and 14th career major title (putting her fourth on the list behind Graf's 22, Evert and Navratilova at 18). She became the first 30-year-old Grand Slam champion since Martina Navratilova in 1990 and the seventh different Grand Slam women's champ of the last seven majors. Serena continued riding her hot serve, blasting 17 aces on the way to her first Slam title since winning here in 2010.

Andy Murray

His draw opened up significantly when Rafael Nadal crashed out in the second round, and the world No. 4 took advantage to become the first British man in 74 years to reach the final at Wimbledon. But with the roof closed for rain, Federer was too good for Murray and the Scot's quest to snap the home-grown title drought ended in four sets.

Agnieszka Radwanska

The women's runner-up reaches a career-high No. 2 in the rankings after coming up short against Serena Williams in the final. Radwanska is still the only Polish player in the Open Era to reach a Grand Slam final. After getting routed 6-1 in the first set and down a break in the second, she broke Serena twice to force a third set. But there Serena was too strong, and Radwanska's best major run of her career ends just short of the title.

Rafael Nadal

The facial expression in the photo says it all. The tennis world was left stunned when Nadal fell to World No. 100 Lukas Rosol in the second round. It marked his earliest departure from a Grand Slam since 2005 and snapped a streak of five straight finals appearances at Wimbledon. "It's not a tragedy," Nadal said. "It's only a tennis match."

Novak Djokovic

The top-ranked Serb could have secured his position atop the rankings with a win over Federer. Now, if Federer wins the title, Djokovic will drop to No. 2 for the first time in nearly a year. In the semis, Djokovic couldn't get his usually superb return going as Federer was serving lights out. His quest to defend his title came up just short with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 loss to Federer.

Maria Sharapova

After a fourth-round loss to Sabine Lisicki, Sharapova will lose her No. 1 ranking by tournament's end. Lisicki played an aggressive, offensive game and was on point with her serves. The soon-to-be-former No. 1 continues the trend of women's Grand Slam champs crashing out early at the next major.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

The enigmatic Frenchman returned to the Wimbledon semifinals, but couldn't get past Andy Murray. Tsonga hobbles out of Wimbledon after putting forth a valiant effort, diving for numerous volleys and getting hit by a Murray smash.

Victoria Azarenka

The Australian Open champ and former No. 1 had smooth sailing and didn't drop a set in her run to the semis. But there, she ran into an in-form Serena, who fired 24 aces in a straight-set dismissal.

John Isner

After a promising start to the season, knocking off Roger Federer, Gilles Simon and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at Davis Cup, Isner's form has dropped significantly. The lanky American followed up a second-round departure from Roland Garros by exiting Wimbledon in the opening round at the hands of Alejandro Falla.

Bernard Tomic

There's losing, and then there's what Bernard Tomic did. The Aussie fell in the first round to David Goffin, and then offered an interesting perspective . "To be honest, I haven't been really working hard the last two months," Tomic said. "I've gotten to where I have won very easily. It's amazing." Not exactly the work ethic of a champion.

Pippa Middleton

As is usually the case at tennis' oldest Grand Slam, spotting royals executing the utmost civility is a sport all of its own. Here, Pippa Middleton, little sister of Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge and future Queen of England, watched Serena Williams' match from the Royal Box at Centre Court on the tournament's first Thursday.

Caroline Wozniacki

The former top-ranked female -- and current girlfriend of professional golfer Rory McIlroy -- looked dejected after her disappointing first-round upset. Ranked No. 7 in the world, she dropped a tough three-setter to Austrian Tamira Paszek, No. 37 in the WTA rankings. The 21-year-old Dane had not experienced as early an exit from a Grand Slam in more than five years.

Mardy Fish

The 30-year-old American is on a bit of a comeback following corrective heart surgery in late May. After a straight-set first-round victory, Fish mustered a tough four-hour, five-set win over British hometown wild card, James Ward. He backed that up with a straight-set win over David Goffin. Since the medical procedure, the 10th-seeded Fish has looked a little sluggish, but he reached the fourth round regardless, where he lost to Tsonga in a rain-plagued match.

Venus Williams

The five-time singles champ and elder Williams sister saw yet another early-round departure, this time in the first round. Venus dropped her match to Russian Elena Vesnina, 6-1, 6-3 on the tournament's first Tuesday. Alongside sister Serena, Venus will be competing in doubles during the upcoming London Olympics, which will also be staged at the grounds of Wimbledon.

Andy Roddick

For the first time this season, the former No. 1 player in the world and three-time Wimbledon finalist advanced to the third round of a Grand Slam. Roddick defeated German Bjorn Phau in straight sets in the second round. But the 30th-seeded A-Rod had his hands full with the ATP's fifth-ranked player, David Ferrer. Roddick took the first set before losing 2-6, 7-6 (8), 6-4, 6-3.

Sloane Stephens

Playing in her first Wimbledon following a fourth-round exit at the French Open, the American teen came up short against Lisicki, one of last year's semifinalists at Wimbledon. At just 19 years old, Stephens, the daughter of a former NFL player, appears to have a bright future ahead. Her eyes now firmly focused on the U.S. Open after missing qualifying for the London Olympics.

Samantha Stosur

Like Wozniacki, the world's No. 5 player bowed out in the second round at the All-England Club, losing to 21-year-old Arantxa Rus of Holland in three sets.

Published Jul 8, 2012

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