Wimbledon Finals for the Ages

Two days, two matches to remember. Matches that made this hockey and football writer divert from the norm during NHL free agency and with NFL camps around the corner.

On Saturday, the Williams sisters played for the title. This is noteworthy enough because in these days, women in their mid- to late-20s are on the WTP's version of social security.

People had written off Venus early in the decade, but she had come in having won two of the last three tournaments. People began writing off Serena a couple years ago when she began putting on weight and showing signs of being distracted by the considerable number of endeavours she was engaged in outside of the tennis court. However, she did win a major (the Australian Open) last year.

One thing they had never done was play a competitive match against each other. No matter how well they were both playing going in, one would steamroll the other by the second set. It always seemed to me that their overbearing and meddling father determined the champion: he would say it was Venus' time, or that now he thought Serena was ready to pass her sister, and lo and behold, he had predicted the winner.

This time, Richard Williams was not heard much from since the time he told the media in India he hated the white man. Enter their best contest yet, with only a couple breaks for Venus in the whole tournament. Serena made a few mistakes, most notably being out of position when she played a forehand at the net, but she played hard and she made Venus work for every point.

Then for good measure, they won the doubles title later the same day, surrendering only a few games. I guess Serena must not be that out of shape.

Now for Act II.

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have been the undisputed numbers one and two in the tennis world since 2005. Federer has spent a record 231 weeks as the #1 player in the world; Nadal a record 153 weeks at number two.

Federer's domination of the field at Wimbledonis surpassed only by Nadal's domination on the clay courts, especially at Roland Garros (the French Open). Federer came in with a 65 match winning streak on grass, and Nadal with a 23 match winning streak overall.

Federer has not lost a grand slam final to anyone other than Nadal, who actually held an 11-5 record against Roger and a 3-2 record in grand slam finals and 4-2 in all grand slam matches. On grass, Federer was 2-0; on hard court, 3-2.

There was also a distinct Bjorn Borg flavour to this finals. Federer came in tied with Borg for the all-time record in consecutive titles (five) at the All England Club, and Nadal was looking to become the first men's player since Borg in 1980 to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year. One of them was going to move the legend over.

This spring, Federer seemed to be slipping. He had lost in the Australian Open to start the year, and was even eliminated early in a tournament before the French Open. He rebounded nicely to get tot the final at Roland Garros, only to be absolutely demolished by Nadal.

And I have not even gotten to the actual match. There is no way it lives up to this many story-lines, right?

Nadal earned an extra break in each of the first two sets, winning both 6-4. No one had come back from two sets down to win Wimbledon since 1927. It was competitive, but it did look like the match would not live up to the background.

But the player with his back to the wall was Roger Federer, arguably the greatest tennis player ever, playing the tournament he owns. No one should have expected him to go quietly.

There were two rain delays helping the older Federer (27 to Nadal's 22). At one point Nadal slipped and appeared to hurt his knee. These are the kinds of breaks that go the way of the champion in any sport.

Federer was further helped by tie-breakers in each of the next two sets, wherein he needed only to break Nadal's serve once more than he was broken (called a mini-break), rather than having to break a full game to win the set. He pulled even with two 7-6 victories that included surviving two championship points, and Federer seemed to capture the momentum of the match.

But if he was going to win, he could not rely on a tie-break for the fifth set, as Wimbledon has the unique (and proper) rule forcing a real break to take the match. He caught a lucky bounce in the fifth set when a return hit the tape and put Nadal on the defensive, and one had to wonder if Nadal, whose game is more well-suited for clay than grass, would unravel as he did in 2007.

Federer got a second lucky bounce late in the final set when he barely got a racket on a Nadal return and the ball went almost straight up in the air. It appeared to be headed wide but blew back in the court; Nadal recovered and two returns later put Federer away.

By this time, in what was already the longest match in the history of the most historic of tournaments, everyone in the airport restaurant and bar was hanging on every shot. The great thing about tennis, even in a rivalry such as this, is that not only do both players respect each other, but so do both of their fans. Moreover, everyone can root to some degree for both players--you want to see great plays by Federer, even if (as with most of those watching) you are pulling for Nadal.

Finally, up 8-7, Nadal earned his third championship point, and delivered a fantastic first serve that hit the tape to Federer's backhand side. It had such spin that it looked like something nonreturnable even had it been to Roger's stronger forehand, but he sliced a backhand cross-court about an inch above the net that Nadal could only watch. I have been following tennis for over two decades and have never even seen Andre Agassi, the master of the return of serve, hit one so perfectly.

Unshaken, Nadal earned his fourth championship point and served into Federer's body, but not well enough to prevent a good return. The ball went back and forth, then Roger's next forehand return hit the net about an inch below the tape.

The only disappointment in an otherwise perfect match: it was won on an unforced error. History had been both made and stopped, and Wimbledon has its first new champion since Federer won it the first time five years ago.

Congratulations to Rafael Nadal. Congratulations to Roger Federer. Congratulations to Wimbledon for hosting the greatest match of all-time. Congratulations to tennis.