Federer takes No. 1 at Wimbeldon
Reclaims title as top in the world
Roger Federer of Switzerland won his seventh Wimbledon Championship last Sunday at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club in London. On his path to the championship, he defeated first-seeded favorite Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the semifinals in four tough sets (6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3). In the finals, Federer rallied back to beat the fourth-seeded Andy Murray of Scotland in four sets after dropping the first set (4-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-4).
Second-seeded Rafael Nadal of Spain received an early exit from the tournament after losing unexpectedly to 26-year-old Lukas Rosol of the Czech Republic, who is ranked No. 100 in the world. Nadal’s loss probably made winning the final match much more feasible for Federer, who has lost quite a few Grand Slam Finals to Nadal, including the 2008 Wimbledon Finals. Nadal lost to Rosol in five grueling sets in a match that Rosol claims was his best ever.
Thirty-year-old Federer holds the record for Grand Slam singles titles with seventeen titles, and Nadal is tied for fourth with eleven titles. Among other active players, Djokovic has five. Although Federer’s number seems hard to beat, 26-year-old Nadal and 25-year-old Djokovic still have plenty of time to assert their dominance over the 30-year-old.
Federer regained the No. 1 ranking in the world with his brilliant performances over the last two weeks, but he will have to use this momentum to perform well at the US Open, which starts on August 27, if he hopes to retain the number one position at the end of the year.