Wimbledon Capsules: Roger's Record: Federer beats Roddick for record 15th Grand Slam

WIMBLEDON, England - Roger Federer was playing for history. Andy Roddick was playing the match of his life.

On and on they dueled, Federer trying for a record-breaking 15th major championship, Roddick striving for his second, in a Wimbledon final that required more games than any Grand Slam title match in the considerable annals of a sport dating to the 1800s.

"Ten games all, final set," intoned the chair umpire. Then, "Twelve games all, final set." And, still later, "Fourteen games all, final set."

They were each other's equal for four full sets and nearly the entire 30-game fifth set. Until Federer, far more experienced in such matters, finally edged ahead, breaking Roddick's serve for the only time in the 77th and last game to close out a 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14 victory Sunday.

The epic match - the fifth set alone lasted more than 1½ hours - gave Federer his sixth Wimbledon title. Add that to five from the U.S. Open, three from the Australian Open and one from the French Open, and Federer's Grand Slam total rises to 15, one more than Pete Sampras, who flew in from California on Sunday morning to be on hand.

"He's a legend," Sampras said. "Now he's an icon."

Indeed, Sampras already was among those labeling Federer the greatest tennis player ever, and there's no doubt the 27-year-old from Switzerland keeps bolstering his case.

"It's not really one of those goals you set as a little boy," Federer told the Centre Court crowd during the trophy ceremony, "but, man, it's been quite a career. And quite a month."

Federer won the French Open four Sundays earlier to complete a career Grand Slam and tie Sampras with 14 major titles (Margaret Smith Court owns the women's record of 24).

"Sorry, Pete," Roddick said. "I tried to hold him off."

He weathered Federer's career-high 50 aces and his 107 total winners in the longest match and longest fifth set in major final history, topping marks set in 1927.

The tennis gods - as well as Sampras, Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg, all in front-row seats - must have enjoyed every moment of the 4-hour, 16-minute tussle. Federer, who can make it all look so easy, was forced to work darned hard to eclipse Sampras' mark, and Roddick was left heartbreakingly close to finally winning Wimbledon.

Roddick dropped to 0-3 in finals at the All England Club, also beaten by Federer in 2004 and 2005. After the match ended on a shanked forehand by the sixth-seeded American, the two men hugged at the net. A mere handshake wouldn't do.

The winner donned a specially tailored white jacket with a gold "15" stitched on the back, while the loser - a word that hardly seems fair in this case - slumped in his chair, head bowed, until rising to acknowledge the spectators' chorus of "Rodd-ick! Rodd-ick!"

"Sports, or tennis, is cruel sometimes. We know it," Federer said. "I went through some five-setters in Grand Slam finals, too, and ended up losing. It's hard."

A year ago, on the same lawn, Federer's five-year reign as Wimbledon champion ended in a 9-7 fifth set defeat against his nemesis, Rafael Nadal. Six weeks later, Federer relinquished to Nadal the No. 1 ranking after a record 237 consecutive weeks at the top.

But Nadal did not defend his Wimbledon title, citing sore knees, and Federer not only regained his championship at the All England Club - the Grand Slam he says means the most to him - but returns to No. 1 Monday.

"It's staggering that I've been able to play so well for so many years now and stay injury-free," Federer said. "I knew what it took to win the big ones. ... It's crazy that I've been able to win so many in such a short period of time."

Sampras - whose 14th major title came in his last match, at age 31, at the 2002 U.S. Open - and his wife appeared in the Royal Box during the changeover after Sunday's third game. Walking to the baseline directly below, Federer acknowledged Sampras with a nod of the head and a little wave.

"I thought, 'I don't want to be rude,' you know?" Federer said.

He wept with joy after his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003. And he bawled in the locker room after his 40-match winning streak here ended against Nadal in 2008. This time, Federer kept it together, perhaps because he was too exhausted after a match chock-full of contradictions:

- Federer's ace count was one shy of the Wimbledon record and, most remarkably, 23 more than Roddick, who is better-known for his knee-buckling serves.

- Roddick broke serve twice in the first four sets; Federer, considered a superior returner, couldn't come through until the match's concluding game.

- Federer won both tiebreakers; Roddick is the one who began the day 26-4 in those set-capping races to seven points.

Then there was the most counterintuitive piece of all: that Roddick would even stay close, much less be on the verge of victory, given that he came in 2-18 against Federer, including 0-7 at major tournaments.

Roddick made quite clear, quite quickly, that he is a new-and-improved version, delivering four passing winners by the time the match was 13 minutes old - three with his backhand, long his weaker side.

And he broke Federer to close the first set. It happened suddenly: Federer won 21 of the first 24 points on his serve, but Roddick took three out of four in a blink, earning the last point of that set with a backhand down the line that drew a wide forehand from Federer.

The crowd roared, sensing an upset. There were more rumblings when Roddick, the 2003 U.S. Open champion, went up 6-2 in the second-set tiebreaker. Here, then, were four chances to take a 2-0 lead in sets.

Roddick might have been forgiven for thinking, "Wow, I'm one point away from leading Roger Federer two sets to none in the Wimbledon final." He certainly played as though burdened by looking ahead, letting all four set points slip from his grasp. Most discouraging was the last, when he wildly misplayed a backhand volley. It was part of a six-point, set-ending run for Federer.

How does someone recover from that? Somehow, Roddick did.

"At that point, like everything else, there's two options: You lay down or you keep going," he said. "The second option sounded better to me."

Roddick lost the third set, too, but rallied to take the fourth, and then came the fifth. Wimbledon doesn't use tiebreakers in fifth sets, and there were times it seemed Federer and Roddick would play into the night.

Federer faced a serious test at 8-8, though, when Roddick earned two break points with a backhand winner down the line. Federer saved the first with a 118 mph service winner, and the second with a volley winner. There was not another break point for either man until Roddick served while trailing 15-14.

At deuce, Roddick sailed a forehand long, giving Federer his seventh break point of the match. Until then, he was 0 for 6. But this was also a championship point, and Federer converted.

"Frustrating, at times, because I couldn't break Andy 'til the very, very end," Federer said. "So satisfaction is maybe bigger this time around to come through, because I couldn't control the match at all."

As he enjoyed the first post-victory moments in the locker room - a more muted celebration than usual, owing to Roddick's presence - members of the grounds crew entered and presented him with the Centre Court net. Another keepsake for Federer's ever-more-crowded trophy room.

This was the first Wimbledon with a retractable roof on Centre Court, a modern touch for a stadium that opened in 1922.

But this edition of the tournament wound up being almost entirely dry, with only two matches contested with the roof shut. This final was played with the blue sky above. The tennis gods must have wanted a good view.

No solace for Roddick in coming close at Wimbledon 

WIMBLEDON, England - Andy Roddick slumped forward in his changeover chair, hands covering his grass-stained baseball cap, stung by his third loss in a Wimbledon final, all to Roger Federer.

This one was quite unlike the others, in 2004 and 2005: This one ended 16-14 in the fifth set, a test of will as much as skill.

A chant rose from the Centre Court crowd of about 15,000 as Roddick sat there, alone in thought, moments after Federer had claimed his sixth Wimbledon title and record 15th Grand Slam championship in a 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14 epic Sunday.

"Rodd-ick! Rodd-ick! Rodd-ick!"

How often does the loser of a match earn such a serenade? Hearing that chorus, Roddick rose to stand and applaud the fans.

"It showed that they appreciated, I guess, what we did out there today," a subdued Roddick said later. "It was definitely a nice and appreciated gesture."

Federer felt for his foe on this day.

"Sports, or tennis, is cruel sometimes," Federer said. "We know it."

A year ago, Roddick lost in the second round at the All England Club, prompting some soul-searching - and, eventually, revamping. He hired a new coach, Larry Stefanki. Changed his eating habits, dropping 7 kilograms (15 pounds). And he worked and worked and worked, as much or more than ever, to improve his game, focusing with particular zeal on his backhand, his volleys, his returns.

All of those pieces allowed him to come quite close to adding a second Grand Slam title to his resume, alongside his 2003 U.S. Open title.

He broke Federer in the last game of the first set with a backhand down the line that forced an error. Roddick then took a 6-2 lead in the second-set tiebreaker. But he failed to convert any of those four set points, badly missing a backhand volley with a wide-open court on the last one.

"There was a pretty significant wind behind him at that side. It was gusting pretty good at that time. When he first hit it, I thought I wasn't going to play it," Roddick said. "Last minute, it looked like it started dropping. I couldn't get my racket around on it."

Federer won the last six points of that tiebreaker, and Roddick might have been expected to fold there.

"At that point, like everything else, there's two options: You lay down or you keep going," Roddick said. "The second option sounded better to me."

And he most certainly did hang in there, even after dropping the third-set tiebreaker, too.

"Playing the way he did the last three sets, it's a sign of a person's character, and in my mind a champion," Stefanki said.

Roddick was playing in his fifth career Grand Slam final Sunday; Federer in his record 20th. Roddick is now 1-4 on such occasions, with all of the losses to Federer, including at the 2006 U.S. Open. Indeed, Roddick dropped to 2-19 against Federer over their careers.

Roddick could be excused for wishing he had been born at another time, in another era, rather than being a year younger than Federer.

Their 2004 final at the All England Club went four sets, their 2005 final only three.

So Roddick was asked how Sunday's defeat compared.

His answer was simple: "It's worse."

-- Howard Fendrich

Federer and Roddick play record-breaking 5th set

WIMBLEDON, England - Serve after booming serve, game after nerve-racking game, Roger Federer and Andy Roddick went at each other with everything they had in the fifth set of the Wimbledon final.

When it finally ended, with Federer claiming a record-breaking 15th Grand Slam title and a sixth Wimbledon trophy, the fifth-set score of 16-14 stood apart from any other ever seen after a final on the All England Club's Centre Court.

"It's frustrating at times because I couldn't break Andy till the very, very end," said Federer, who won the match 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14 in his third straight five-set Wimbledon final. "So satisfaction is maybe bigger this time around to come through, because I couldn't control the match at all."

Last year, Federer lost to Rafael Nadal 9-7 in the fifth. That 16-game set tied the previous record for games in a fifth set in a Wimbledon final. The overall Grand Slam record was an 11-9 fifth set at the 1927 French championships.

In 2007, Federer beat Nadal in five sets to win his fifth straight Wimbledon title.

"I went through some five setters in Grand Slam finals, too, and ended up losing," said Federer, who also lost to Nadal in five at this year's Australian Open final. "I think it's one of the best matches we played against each other."

Roddick came into the match a big underdog. Besides losing to Federer in both the 2004 and '05 Wimbledon finals, Roddick also entered the day with a 2-18 career record against the Swiss.

But the 26-year-old American didn't appear to be weighed down by numbers on Sunday.

"You just keep going," Roddick said of the 4-hour, 16-minute match. "Looking back it seems like a lot, but each time it was just a point, and then another one and then another one. I guess it added up after a while."

The longest set in a men's final at the All England Club had been 13-11, which happened twice in the annals of Wimbledon, once in 1958 and once in 1954, when there were no tiebreakers.

Besides the 30-game final set, the match also set a record for most games in a Grand Slam final with 77. The previous record of 71 games was set at the 1927 Australian championships, when Gerald Patterson defeated John Hawkes 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 18-16, 6-3.

Last year's Wimbledon final - Nadal's 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7 win over Federer in 62 games - had been the previous record at the All England Club.

-- Chris Lehourites

Quotes on Federer's 15th Grand Slam title

Quotes about Roger Federer winning his record 15th Grand Slam title Sunday at Wimbledon:

"It's staggering that I've been able to play so well for so many years now and stay injury free." - Roger Federer.

"In a way, I still feel like we share it, just because he was such a wonderful champion." - Federer, on Pete Sampras.

"Sorry, Pete, I tried to hold him off." - Andy Roddick to Sampras.

"He's got 15 now. He could get 17, 18 when it's all done. He's a stud." - Pete Sampras.

The guy, he's a legend. Now he's an icon. He's got 15 majors. That's a lot of majors." - Sampras.

"It's great that tennis has someone like Roger. We always look at Roger, he and Tiger Woods are good friends, fighting to see who can have the best number of Grand Slams in golf and tennis." - Rod Laver.

"We're just a lucky family to have such a son." - Robert Federer, Roger's father.

"I don't think he thought that much about the 15th title. It was more about trying to win the (Wimbledon) title." - Severin Luhti, Switzerland's Davis Cup captain.

"The guy hit (50) aces. That's just too good, and he deserved to win." - Larry Stefanki, Roddick's coach.

Wimbledon Facts & Figures

WIMBLEDON, England - Facts and figures from Sunday's final between Roger Federer and Andy Roddick:

-Roger Federer's victory over Andy Roddick made him the first man to win 15 Grand Slam singles titles, passing Pete Sampras' 14 titles from 1990-02. Federer won his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003.

-This was the longest men's Grand Slam final in history at 77 games. The previous record was 71 games (1927 Australian Open championship between Gerald Patterson and John Hawkes). The previous Wimbledon record was 62 games (last year's Wimbledon final between Federer and Rafael Nadal).

-This was the longest fifth set in a men's Grand Slam final. The previous record was 11-9 (1927 French Open final between Rene Lacoste and Bill Tilden).

-Federer served 50 aces, a personal mark and one behind Ivo Karlovic's Wimbledon record of 51. Federer's previous best was 39 aces against Janko Tipsarevic at the 2008 Australian Open.

-Federer's 182 career victories in Grand Slam events is fifth best in the Open era. He reached this victory mark at 27, younger than any of those ahead of him. The closest are No. 3 Ivan Lendl (222) and No. 4 Sampras (203), who reached their 182nd victories at 29.

Wimbledon at a glance

WIMBLEDON, England - A look at Wimbledon on Sunday:

Weather: Sunny, high of 68 degrees.

Attendance: 30,867, an increase of 2,268 from the final Sunday in 2008. The total for the tournament was a record 511,043, an increase of 35,231 from last year, the previous high.

Men's Singles Final: No. 2 Roger Federer beat No. 6 Andy Roddick 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14 for his record 15th Grand Slam title and sixth Wimbledon championship.

Mixed Doubles Final: No. 9 Mark Knowles of the Bahamas and Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany beat No. 1 Leander Paes of India and Cara Black of Zimbabwe 7-5, 6-3.

Stat of the Day: 30 - Number of games in the fifth set of Federer-Roddick, more than in the fifth set of any Grand Slam singles final.

Quote of the Day: "I really thought I had to play my very, very best to come through." - Federer.

On the Web: http://www.wimbledon.org

Wimbledon Men's Champions 

2009 - Roger Federer; 2008 - Rafael Nadal; 2007 - Roger Federer; 2006 - Roger Federer; 2005 - Roger Federer; 2004 - Roger Federer; 2003 - Roger Federer; 2002 - Lleyton Hewitt; 2001 - Goran Ivanisevic; 2000 - Pete Sampras; 1999 - Pete Sampras; 1998 - Pete Sampras; 1997 - Pete Sampras; 1996 - Richard Krajicek; 1995 - Pete Sampras; 1994 - Pete Sampras; 1993 - Pete Sampras; 1992 - Andre Agassi; 1991 - Michael Stich; 1990 - Stefan Edberg; 1989 - Boris Becker; 1988 - Stefan Edberg; 1987 - Pat Cash; 1986 - Boris Becker; 1985 - Boris Becker; 1984 - John McEnroe; 1983 - John McEnroe; 1982 - Jimmy Connors; 1981 - John McEnroe; 1980 - Bjorn Borg; 1979 - Bjorn Borg; 1978 - Bjorn Borg; 1977 - Bjorn Borg; 1976 - Bjorn Borg; 1975 - Arthur Ashe; 1974 - Jimmy Connors; 1973 - Jan Kodes; 1972 - Stan Smith; 1971 - John Newcombe; 1970 - John Newcombe; 1969 - Rod Laver; 1968 - Rod Laver; 1967 - John Newcombe; 1966 - Manolo Santana; 1965 - Roy Emerson; 1964 - Roy Emerson; 1963 - Chuck McKinley; 1962 - Rod Laver; 1961 - Rod Laver; 1960 - Neale Fraser; 1959 - Alex Olmedo; 1958 - Ashley Cooper; 1957 - Lew Hoad; 1956 - Lew Hoad; 1955 - Tony Trabert; 1954 - Jaroslav Drobny; 1953 - Vic Seixas; 1952 - Frank Sedgman; 1951 - Dick Savitt; 1950 - Budge Patty; 1949 - Ted Schroeder; 1948 - Bob Falkenburg; 1947 - Jack Kramer; 1946 - Yvon Petra; 1940-45 - No tournament, World War II; 1939 - Bobby Riggs; 1938 - Don Budge; 1937 - Don Budge; 1936 - Fred Perry; 1935 - Fred Perry; 1934 - Fred Perry; 1933 - Jack Crawford; 1932 - Ellsworth Vines;1931 - Sidney Wood; 1930 - Bill Tilden; 1929 - Henri Cochet; 1928 - Rene Lacoste; 1927 - Henri Cochet; 1926 - Jean Borotra; 1925 - Rene Lacoste; 1924 - Jean Borotra; 1923 - Bill Johnston; 1922 - Gerald Patterson; 1921 - Bill Tilden; 1920 - Bill Tilden; 1919 - Gerald Patterson; 1915-18 - No tournament, World War I; 1914 - Norman Brookes; 1913 - Tony Wilding; 1912 - Tony Wilding; 1911 - Tony Wilding; 1910 - Tony Wilding; 1909 - Arthur Gore; 1908 - Arthur Gore; 1907 - Norman Brookes; 1906 - Laurie Doherty; 1905 - Laurie Doherty; 1904 - Laurie Doherty; 1903 - Laurie Doherty; 1902 - Laurie Doherty; 1901 - Arthur Gore; 1900 - Reggie Doherty; 1899 - Reggie Doherty; 1898 - Reggie Doherty; 1897 - Reggie Doherty; 1896 - Harold Mahoney; 1895 - Wilfred Baddeley; 1894 - Joshua Pim; 1893 - Joshua Pim; 1892 - Wilfred Baddeley; 1891 - Wilfred Baddeley; 1890 - Willoughby Hamilton; 1889 - Willie Renshaw; 1888 - Ernest Renshaw; 1887 - Herbert Lawford; 1886 - Willie Renshaw; 1885 - Willie Renshaw; 1884 - Willie Renshaw; 1883 - Willie Renshaw; 1882 - Willie Renshaw; 1881 - Willie Renshaw; 1880 - John Hartley; 1879 - John Hartley; 1878 - Frank Hadow; 1877 - Spencer Gore

Serena Williams still chasing true Grand Slam

WIMBLEDON, England - Even with three of the last four major titles in hand, Serena Williams is still upset about the one that got away.

She beat sister Venus for her third Wimbledon title Saturday, making the younger Williams the reigning champion at the U.S. Open, the Australian Open and the All England Club.

However, a second French Open title and a chance at a true Grand Slam - winning all four majors in the same year - eluded her.

"I'm really disappointed because I think this is the year I could have done it. And I didn't," Serena said Sunday, a day after beating Venus 7-6 (3), 6-2 on the Centre Court grass. "I honestly had the biggest chance to win all four than I've ever had in my career."

Over the last five Grand Slam tournaments, Serena has an astonishing 31-2 record. Her only setbacks were a straight-set loss to Venus in last year's Wimbledon final and a three-set loss to eventual champion Svetlana Kuznetsova in the French Open quarterfinals.

"I really just basically screwed up. But I can't live in the past, even though I am always still thinking about my quarterfinal match that I could have won," Serena said. "But what can I do?"

What she can still do is repeat her feat of winning all four majors in succession, as she did in 2003 when she completed her "Serena Slam" with the Australian Open title.

"My goal now is win, to keep winning until I get to the French and win the French and then I'll just have another 'Serena Slam,'" the 27-year-old American said.

Serena's third Wimbledon crown - all have come with wins over Venus in the final - was her 11th major singles title overall.

What's next? Probably more titles.

"I never thought I would be at this point where I would think about, 'Wow, I want to win X amount,' " Serena said. "But for the first time in my career, well the second time, I have a number that I want to reach.

"My first number was reaching Monica Seles, I was finally able to do that," Serena said, referring to the nine Grand Slam titles to match Seles. "Now I'm looking at Billie Jean King."

King, who was in the crowd Saturday to watch the sisters play their eighth Grand Slam final, won 12 major titles. Margaret Smith Court holds the women's record with 24 major singles titles.

Just getting close to King's number has been a testament to Serena's perseverance.

She had won six of her Grand Slam titles by 2003, but big wins came far less frequently after that as she began to focus on projects away from tennis. That has changed recently, and along with her success has come the enjoyment of playing.

"I'm having a lot of fun now, more fun," Serena said. "I don't play unless I'm really enjoying myself. I think that's the difference with now. I'm really, every moment out there, I want to be out there. There's nothing like doing something that you love so much."

It is certainly showing in her form.

Despite staying at No. 2 in the rankings behind Dinara Safina, she has proved during the last year she is by far the best player on the tour. Serena has a 32-7 record in 2009, and half those losses came amid a four-match skid that started in April at the Sony Ericsson Open final in Key Biscayne, Fla.

Against Venus, who had entered the match with a 20-match winning streak at Wimbledon, Serena was the underdog. That was partly because of Venus' domination of Safina in the semifinals and partly because of her own struggle to beat Elena Dementieva in the same round.

After saving a match point and reaching the final, Serena said her forehand had gone on vacation to Hawaii, but she hoped it would return for the final.

It did, but the successful use of that shot against Venus may be more attributed to the tape she wrapped around her right wrist before walking onto the court.

"I honestly think I was taping my wrist for superstitious reasons, actually," Serena said. "I didn't tape it at the French and I lost, so I figured I better start taping it."

-- Chris Lehourites

Knowles, Groenefeld win mixed doubles title

WIMBLEDON, England - Mark Knowles of the Bahamas and Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany won the mixed doubles titles at Wimbledon on Sunday by beating top-seeded Leander Paes of India and Cara Black of Zimbabwe 7-5, 6-3.

Knowles has won the men's doubles titles at the other three Grand Slam tournaments, but he had never before won at Wimbledon.

"I've always wanted to win Wimbledon. It's the most important tournament in my mind," Knowles said. "Like everybody, it's the tournament we all look up to. It's extremely special."

The match was played on Centre Court at the All England Club, but the four players had to wait for Roger Federer to complete his 5-7, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), 3-6, 16-14 win over Andy Roddick. That final went a Grand Slam record 77 games.

"We were waiting and waiting," Groenefeld said. "But, yeah, you never know when it's going to happen, when it's finished, the match before. But you're always ready."

Many of those who watched Federer win his record 15th Grand Slam title stayed to watch the mixed doubles.

"I wasn't expecting that many people to be there," Knowles said. "Obviously after such a thrilling encounter in the men's singles, it's pretty tough to follow that."

Knowles and Groenefeld, who converted four of their 10 break points and finished the match with 20 winners, trailed 5-2 in the first set.

"I actually said to Anna on the changeover, 'Let's stay positive,'" Knowles said. "We had lost a couple of close games really. We were playing pretty well."

Whatever was said worked because Knowles and Groenefeld won the next five games to take the first set.

"I think that attitude helped us turn it around," Knowles said. "We obviously won six or seven or eight games on the trot. I think things started going our way."