Federer Makes History at Wimbledon

The Swiss great wins it for the 8th time, a record
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Jul 16, 2017 10:37 AM CDT
Federer Wins Record 8th Wimbledon Championship
Switzerland's Roger Federer walks back to his seat after holding his serve against Croatia's Marin Cilic in the Men's Singles final match on day thirteen at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London Sunday, July 16, 2017.    (Tim Ireland)

Roger Federer's wait for No. 8 at Wimbledon is over. Federer won his eighth title at the All England Club and 19th major trophy overall, capping a marvelous fortnight in which he never dropped a set by overwhelming Marin Cilic 6-3, 6-1, 6-4 on Sunday in a lopsided final that was more coronation than contest, the AP reports. When it ended, with an ace from Federer after merely 1 hour and 41 minutes, he raised both arms overhead. Truly, the outcome was only in doubt for about 20 minutes, the amount of time it took Federer to grab his first lead. Cilic, whose left foot was treated by a trainer in the late going, was never able to summon the intimidating serves or crisp volleys that carried him to his lone Grand Slam title at the 2014 US Open, where he surprisingly beat Federer in straight sets in the semifinals.

This one was all Federer, who last won Wimbledon in 2012. That seventh championship pulled Federer even with Pete Sampras and William Renshaw in what's still officially called "Gentlemen's Singles." Sampras won all but one of his in the 1990s; Renshaw won each of his in the 1880s. Federer had come close to bettering his predecessors but couldn't quite do it. He lost in the 2014 and 2015 Wimbledon finals to Novak Djokovic, and in the semifinals last year after erasing match points to get past Cilic in a five-set quarterfinal. In 2016, he had surgery on his left knee, then sat out the French Open because of a bad back. Then, after Wimbledon, he did not play at all the rest of the year, skipping the Rio Olympics, the US Open, and everything else in an attempt to let his knee fully heal. It worked. Did it ever. (More Roger Federer stories.)

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