By Kiran Galani
Tennis luminary Roger Federer wove his magic once again as he clinched a record breaking 8th Wimbledon title on the 16th of July, 2017. Having had a flawless run throughout the tournament, Federer reached the finals without losing a set. He continued his extraordinary run of form and defeated Marin Cilic in the finals, still managing not to drop a single set.
The 36-year-old phenomenon breezed through the tournament, not letting the fact that he was older than most of the other contestants faze him as he aimed for his 19th Grand Slam title. The win allowed him to reclaim his beloved Wimbledon Trophy five years after his last tournament win in 2012.
The journey so far
Federer set out on his tennis adventure at the tender age of eight. By the time he was eleven years old, he was already renowned as one of the top 3 players in Switzerland. He entered the major leagues with a bang, knocking out the legendary Pete Sampras from the 2001 Wimbledon tournament soon after his debut in 1998. He became the first Swiss man to win a Grand Slam title when he won the Wimbledon Tournament for the first time in 2003; from there onward, there was no stopping him.
As he collected title after title and won every award there was to winincluding the Olympic goldhe slowly and steadily reached the top. For several years, he was ranked as the number 1 tennis player in the world.
His career did have its ups and downs over the years, and 2016 was one such low point. He was plagued by several injuries during the first half of the year including a knee injury, a back injury, and even a stomach virus. Federer announced that he was going to take the rest of the year off to ensure proper recovery and to prepare for the Wimbledon 2017.
The break clearly paid off as he gave one of his best performances in the 2017 Wimbledon Tournament, winning the title.
The final match
While Federer breezed through most of the tournament, winning the final seemed to be an especially easy feat for him. It was an entirely one-sided match with him scoring a 63, 61, 64 victory over Marin Cilic. While Federer and Cilic had faced each other in an extremely intense match during the semi-finals of the 2014 US Open and the Wimbledon Quarterfinals last year, Cilic’s sporting genius was barely visible in this match. This may be because of the fact that Cilic was suffering from a bad bruise to his foot that didnt permit him to play to his complete potential.
Cilics disappointment at his inability to perform at this critical juncture was evident as he began to cry during a break while he was down a set. It was just that feeling that I wasnt able to give the best, he later explained.
While he still managed to give Federer a decent fight, Federer didnt waiver and quickly established his victory.
Time for celebration
Delighted at his win, Federer has been celebrating with family and friends since the match ended. I had an amazing amount of friends and family who came from all over the world to support me. There was almost 80 of us celebrating. That was a beautiful moment, celebrating away from the press and the world watching for about an hour, he said during a press conference the day after the win.
When asked about his plans for the future and whether he intends to try and reach the round figure of 20 Grand Slam titles, he responded in a manner reminiscent of a man who has won it all. He focused instead on how he intends to celebrate the current moment.
The target now is to enjoy being Wimbledon champion, he elaborated. I havent set a sight on a number of grand slams; I was very content at 17, which was a wonderful number. So was 18, and now 19 is great. I think now its about enjoying myself, staying healthy and playing for titles, he concluded.
Featured Image Source: Wikimedia Commons