How Djokovic held tough to beat Federer for the Wimbledon men’s title

12:03 pm | July 14, 2019 | Go to Source | Author:

3:57 PM ET

LONDON — After four hours and 55 minutes, Novak Djokovic won the fifth-set tiebreak in Wimbledon’s longest singles final to beat Roger Federer in a match for the ages.

The fifth set lasted just under two hours in itself, but it was Djokovic who edged past Federer in an epic 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 6-5, 13-12 (3) victory — Wimbledon’s first fifth-set tiebreak under new rules introduced this year.

Djokovic saved two championship points in the final set, and his resilience and ability to swing tiebreaks in his favor saw him clinch his fifth career Wimbledon singles title. Here’s how he did it:

Federer gets tight in the tiebreaks

Have a look at the stats and you’d think Federer had this match in the bag. He had a better first serve percentage, more first- and second-serve points won, a better return record and more break points won. Everything went in Federer’s favor — including 40 more winners than Djokovic — while he converted seven of 13 break opportunities.

However, taking all this into account, there was one statistic where Djokovic had the edge: unforced errors, as Federer hit nine more than Djokovic. And herein lies the story of the match. Djokovic didn’t get his first break of serve until the fourth set, but he was already up two sets to one at that stage.

Djokovic managed to find the mental edge in the tiebreaks, focusing just long enough in each to fend off Federer. Federer made an uncharacteristic eight errors across the two tiebreaks in the first and third sets and, by the fifth, Djokovic answered everything Federer threw at him. The pair have now played four five-set matches in Grand Slams and Djokovic has won all four.

Djokovic sticks to the plan

Novak Djokovic wins the third set to take a 2-1 lead over Roger Federer.

Federer tried to mix things up against Djokovic. He spoke prematch about how he knew Djokovic’s game inside out — he targeted Djokovic’s backhand with sliced shots, keeping them low while also nullifying the threat of Djokovic’s rocket forehand. Federer also knew if the game descended into rallying, then more often than not the relentless Djokovic would come through. So he tried to force the tempo, utilizing more serve-volley than we have seen and generally pushing the pace of the match. Federer charged to the net 27 times more than Djokovic and won 15 percent more points.

Equally, on his serve, Federer caused Djokovic all manner of difficulty by using his brilliantly neutral ball toss to disguise which way his serve was going. Djokovic struggled throughout the match to read it, with Federer clocking up 25 aces to Djokovic’s 10. However, in the tiebreaks, Djokovic went on the front foot, gambling on occasion and causing Federer to make uncharacteristic errors.

In the end, it came down to Djokovic converting key points when they mattered most, like those two championship points he saved when down 7-8 in the fifth. During the mini-breaks in the decisive tiebreak, Djokovic reversed the trend and converted more points off his first serve than Federer to secure the title.

Survival of the fittest

Novak Djokovic outlasts Roger Federer in a marathon fifth set to win his fifth Wimbledon title and 16th Grand Slam.

Federer turns 38 in just over three weeks and would have become the oldest-ever winner of a Grand Slam title had he clung on in the fifth set.

Djokovic is already 32, but he too could be around for some time to come. He even paid tribute to Federer’s longevity in his postmatch speech, calling his opponent an inspiration.

Neither man seems to be slowing down. In the fifth set, they both covered more ground per point than at any other moment in the match (Djokovic clocked in at 12.5 metres per point to Federer’s 12.2). With neither looking likely to crack at 6-5 in the final set, Djokovic even had to check with the umpire when exactly a tiebreak would come into effect.

Far from it being a sign of a loss of focus, Djokovic remained in the zone throughout. He would save two championship points in dramatic style and simply refused to buckle before overpowering Federer in the decisive tiebreak. His fifth Wimbledon title does not feel like it will be his last.