Roger denied Rafa's grass-court push with some clutch final-set serving.
In 2007, tennis' leading men transformed the ceremonial walk onto Centre Court into a shared march toward history. Federer was continuing his quest to equal Bjorn Borg's record of five straight Wimbledon titles, while Nadal was bidding to become the first man since Borg in 1980 to reign at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same season.
The top-seeded Swiss spent the next five sets trying to stay one step ahead of Nadal in a momentous rematch of their 2006 final. Playing for the seventh straight day, Nadal rampaged through the fourth set to push the champion into a decider the All England Club for the first time in six years.
When Federer's moment of truth arrived, he responded with his most imposing shots of the match. Fighting off four break points in his first two service games of the final set, Federer won 12 of 13 points in a crucial stretch to capture his 11th Grand Slam singles title. Raising his level in the final four games, Federer fittingly concluded the match soaring above the court. Elevating into an overhead smash to provide the punctuation to a three-hour and 45-minute battle, Federer dropped to his knees, then fell flat on his back in exhilaration while pinching back tears from his eyes.
It was a match filled with bursts of explosive athleticism and astonishing shotmaking: Federer finished with 65 winners and 34 unforced errors; Nadal struck 50 winners against 24 unforced errors. Fighting for every point with the single-minded focus he showed in a four-set win over Federer weeks earlier in the French Open final, Nadal dropped serve in his opening service game but did not surrender serve again until sixth game of the final set—when Federer repeatedly found the lines, cracking a forehand winner for the massive break.
"Rafa had the upper hand on me basically all match long on the baseline," Federer said afterward. "It was very close. I think Rafael played phenomenal tennis...I fought really hard. At 5-2, I was getting emotional, starting to cry. I had to calm down to get it done."
For Nadal, it was ultimately a match of missed opportunities. Had he converted any of the four break points in the final set, he would have played from in front and imposed enormous pressure on Federer, who had not been able to crack Nadal's serve for three straight sets. But the man whose topspin gives him more margin for error missed the mark on the most pivotal points, slightly trying to flatten out his shots in a series of crucial misfires.
"[It] was tough for me because I have two 15-40s in the fifth. One was big chance for have the break," Nadal said. "I didn't lose the serve since the second game of the match. I know if I have the break in the fifth I have very good chances for have the title. He saved some points with the serve. And later when he has to win, he has to break me, he played very good. "
Extending his record grass-court winning streak to 53 matches and his Wimbledon winning streak to 34 matches, it was Federer who matched Borg's achievement on this day, even if Nadal would accomplish his goal a year later.
Federer's Most Memorable Wimbledon Moments
—No. 5: Toppling the top seed, and his idol (2001, vs. Sampras)
—No. 4: First Championships, first major (2003, vs. Philippoussis)
—No. 3: Bending but not breaking, for five straight (2007, vs. Nadal)
—No. 2: The greatest loss of all time (2008, vs. Nadal)
—No. 1: The king's coronation (2009, vs. Roddick)
