Highlights, reaction from Djokovic's dramatic Wimbledon win over Federer
LONDON -- Novak Djokovic fended off Roger Federer 6-7 (7), 6-4, 7-6 (4), 5-7, 6-4 on Sunday to win his second Wimbledon title.
The Serb was just a game away from the title in the fourth set before Federer saved a match point and won five consecutive games to force a decisive fifth set. But Djokovic broke Federer in the final game of the match to deny the Swiss a record eighth Wimbledon crown.
Highlights, statistics and reaction to Djokovic's seventh major title below:
Highlights
Go figure
143: Combined winners hit for Federer and Djokovic.
56: Combined unforced errors.
1948: The last time a player saved championship point in the Wimbledon final and came back to win (Robert Falkenburg). That record still stands.
12: Times Federer and Djokovic have met at the majors, tying the record held by Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
2009: The last time a Slam final did not feature either Nadal or Andy Murray.
4: Breaks of serve for Djokovic. Federer has been broken once in 89 games entering the final.
They said it
Federer's interview during trophy ceremony:
Djokovic's interview during trophy ceremony:
Federer: "The match was a good one. It had everything for fans to like. The swing of momentum in the first set, him coming back in the second, staying even in the third, all the back and forth in the fourth set, and then the drama of the fifth. From that standpoint, it was an interesting match. The level was good. I don't feel I necessarily played my absolute very best, because I couldn't break for over three sets. That was disappointing."
Federer: "I couldn't figure out why I wasn't breaking Novak's serve or actually creating opportunities. It's one thing not to break. That can happen if the other guy plays well in the big moments. But it was really not creating enough opportunities to put Novak under pressure. It's really only until the fourth set when I was down a break that I started to understand more how to return him, which was a surprise for me because I've played him [35] times."
Federer: "For some reason it never ended up being 15-30, 30-All, putting Novak under pressure enough, so he could always free serve, free swing, and take chances on his second serve. Yeah, so I felt like that was my biggest problem really overall. I think that's where I lost the match. I served well myself throughout. I feel like if I would have returned better or would have understood it earlier or if he would have helped me out just a little bit things could have been quite different today."
Federer: "It's even more memorable when I see my kids [in the player box] with my wife. That's what touched me the most. The disappointment of the match itself went pretty quickly. I was sad for a few minutes, but so happy to see family and a lot of nice ovations from the crowd. That lifted me up and made me feel better, no doubt. So I got over it fairly quickly. But clearly I was very sad walking off the court not with the winner's trophy."
Federer on the prospect of having played his last major final: "There is no guarantee that you're going to be ever [in a Slam final] again or not. Or maybe there's much more to come. It's really impossible to answer that question. I'm very happy to see that with feeling normal I can produce a performance like I did the last two weeks. That clearly makes me believe that this was just a steppingstone to many more great things."
Djokovic: "This has been the best-quality Grand Slam final that I ever been part of. I've had a longest final, against Nadal in the Australian Open 2012. But quality-wise, from the first to last point, this is definitely the best match."
Djokovic: "It was disappointing losing the fourth set after being so close to winning it and [having] match point. But the only way I could have won the match is by believing that I can make it all the way until the end and staying mentally strong. That's what I've done. I didn't allow my emotions to fade away, as it was probably the case in the Roland Garros final a couple weeks ago."
Djokovic on eating some Centre Court grass in celebration: "It tastes like the best meal that I ever had in my life."
Djokovic on this being the Grand Slam title he's most proud of: "Most special Grand Slam final I've played. At the time of my career for this Grand Slam trophy to arrive is crucial, especially after losing [three] Grand Slam finals in a row. I started doubting, of course, a little bit. I needed this win a lot. I'm going to try to use it in the best possible way and for my confidence to grow for the rest of my season and the rest of my career."
