Eight-time champion Roger Federer was defeated by world No.1 Novak Djokovic at the Wimbledon Championships finals earlier this year after the former failed to grab two championship points. The Swiss star revealed in an interview that he cried after declining the two match points during one of the greatest matches ever at the Wimbledon.
Two months ago, the two goliaths of the sport – Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer served up the longest singles final in the history of Wimbledon. It was Roger Federer who blinked first after nearly five hours of exhausting tennis as the Serbian won the match 7-6 (7-5) 1-6 7-6 (7-4) 4-6 13-12 (7-3) and secured his 16th Grand Slam title.
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The 20-time Grand Slam champion talked about how he felt after missing the ninth Wimbledon title by proximity.
In an interview with Gazzetta Dello Sport, the Basel native revealed when he last cried. He said: “The last time I cried? Two months ago at Wimbledon.”
The Swiss maestro further divulged that he held his tears back during the match and the presentation ceremony. “In the field and also at the awards ceremony I held back the tears that were there on the border,” said Federer.
However, Federer couldn’t hold back his emotions when he went back to the locker room after the match. He explained that after he went inside the locker room, he was trying to console himself that he was unlucky of not reaching the finishing line but soon he collapsed and started to cry.
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He concluded: “Then as soon as I got down to the locker room, on the first comment ‘what bad luck, you were close. I collapsed and a few tears escaped.”
At the 2019 Wimbledon Championships, Federer was bidding to become the oldest Grand Slam champion of the Open Era but he ended up at the same position as he was in 2008 against Rafael Nadal.