Djokovic beats Federer in five-set thriller; wins Wimbledon

London, July 14 (IANS): Novak Djokovic claimed his fifth Wimbledon men’s singles title here on Sunday, beating Swiss veteran Roger Federer 7-6 (5), 1-6, 7-6 (4), 4-6, 13-12 (3) in the final. It is the 16th Grand Slam title for the 32-year-old Djokovic, who is ranked no.1 on the ATP rankings.

World No. 3 Federer has won 21 Grand Slams and was chasing a ninth title at Wimbledon.

The final was the pair’s third meeting in the title match at the All England Club. Djokovic has won all of them, in 2014, 2015 and 2019.

Djokovic won the first set via tie-break but Federer raced to victory in the second. The Serb won all three tie-breaks in the match, including the last one which was the first ever tie-break in singles history at Wimbledon.

Federer and Djokovic have played each other 48 times already, with the latter holding a 26-22 head-to-head edge. This is also their 16th showdown at a major tournament – the most between any two men in the professional era – and Djokovic leads that count 10-6 so far.