The Wimbledon 2009 men’s final was an epic battle, and Roger Federer almost lost it. In the end, he mustered enough grit to beat Andy Roddick after four agonizing hours and
claimed his sixth All England championship. More importantly, Federer broke Pete Sampras’ Grand Slam record and established a new one, fifteen titles.

The match was torture of fans of either player. Though I said in an earlier post that I was rooting for Andy, I ended up rooting for Roger Federer. And that’s where the agony was for me. Andy Roddick dominated the match. His shots were sharp, his serves booming. He mixed his shots and never gave Federer a chance to beak his game until that fateful final service game that ended his dream. Roddick won the first set and was leading 6-2 in the second set tie break only to have the Swiss champion claw his way back and snatch the set from him. The third set ended in a tie break as well as both players matched each other’s shots and determination. But it was the fifth set that was the most taxing, ending in a score of 16-14.

At several points in the final set I thought Andy Roddick would win. He seemed more in control with his booming serves, ground strokes and volleys. Roger, on the other hand, seemed nervous, missing easy shots that used to be routine for him. At some point in the final games of the match I turned the television off. I couldn’t handle it. I couldn’t bear to watch Roger lose another epic battle like last year. I only went back to watching it after I knew the result online.

Andy Roddick was visibly distraught. He gave it his all but still came up short. However, Andy Roddick should realize that he amazed millions of us all over the world with what he showed us today on Center Court. There will be other opportunities for him. And with his new-found game, he will definitely win another Grand Slam title soon.


Roger Federer is the greatest tennis player of all time. There should be no question about it now. He has demonstrated not only his skill with this match. What we saw was the character of a real champion.

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