Federer never stopped believing during tough times
Federer never stopped believing during tough times
Roger Federer never doubted his ability to win grand slam titles during a two and a half year drought in which he was written
off in some quarters and passed the 30 year age barrier that often
signals the beginning of the end for top tennis players.
After winning his seventh Wimbledon title with an
emphatic four-set victory over Andy Murray on Sunday, Federer said he
been delighted with his form over the past year despite suffering some
painful losses.
"I played an amazing French Open last year," the Swiss
told a news conference. "I was very close against Rafa (Nadal) in the
final. And I did play actually very well here as well against Jo
(Wilfried Tsonga). Things just didn't turn out well for me."
Federer was knocked out of Wimbledon in the
quarter-finals last year by Tsonga after going two sets up in their
quarter-final and he held a match point against Novak Djokovic in the
U.S. Open semi-finals before suffering a painful defeat.
"I did play great as well at the U.S. Open," he said.
"Again, unlucky. Djokovic played well, whatever you want to call it. But
things were tough for me there."
Federer, whose last grand slam triumph was the 2010
Australian Open, said he always believed things would turn around for
him if he continued to work hard despite Nadal and Djokovic's dominance
at the majors.
"I played a lot of tennis, good tennis, but I wanted to win titles, not just lose in quarters and semis," he said.
"Then the confidence rose as I went to Paris and also
to London. This is when I realised a lot is possible in 2012."
CHANGED ENORMOUSLY
Federer said his life had changed enormously since the birth of his twin daughters in 2009.
"People forget sometimes I do have twin girls," he
said. "That has had a massive impact on my life. I think it's helped my
game more than anything because I think I'm playing some of the best
tennis of my life right now.
"But just to be able to juggle everything together has
been a challenge. And I think you learn from mistakes. You try to make
it work for everyone involved. Hasn't always been easy, I admit that."
The twins and Federer's wife Mirka were on Centre Court
to watch him dash Murray's hopes of winning his first grand slam title
and become the first British man to win the Wimbledon crown for 76
years.
"The victory today is a dream come true today for me
and my family, seeing them there," said Federer who will also return to
the top of the world rankings. "It's big.
"At Wimbledon I think he (Murray) handles it so
perfectly to be quite honest. I really do believe deep down he will win
grand slams, not just one. I do wish him all the best. This is genuine.
He works extremely hard."
Federer, 30, admitted he had not yet been able to assess the significance of his 17th grand slam title.
"Honestly this one hasn't quite sunk in yet for some
reason," he said. "I guess I was trying to be so focused in the moment
itself that when it all happened I was just so happy that it was all
over and that the pressure was gone basically."
Federer said he had received support from many people including former world number one golfer Tiger Woods.
"He was very pumped up these last couple of days for
me. He was very supportive," Federer said. "It's nice when other greats
like this believe in me. They push me further.
