Wimbledon 2016: Roger Federer beats Marin Cilic in five-set epic

Roger Federer produced the kind of win that would have you believe he’s found a way to master time as well as tennis.

If you want to fully comprehend the greatness of Roger Federer, don’t look at the epoch when he was steamrollering opponents and dominating the game with wit and effortlessness. Instead, consider what happened at 0-40 in the seventh game of the third set against Marin Cilic in one of the finest quarter-final matches seen on Centre Court.

There was an outtake of breath as the crowd, deliriously hoping that the ageing lion might roar one last time, finally gave up the ghost. You could see shrugging of shoulders, people looking at their programs to see what was coming next. The 34-year-old was two sets down, his opponent was flowing, and, even in the press box, journalists were writing obituaries. “Perhaps his final chance to win a grand slam has gone,” I saw over one shoulder.

But Federer, this extraordinary champion, surveyed a different scene, one in which he had one last throw of the dice. He had not been playing well, had struggled to contain the power of Cilic, his impressive opponent, and had never quite found his range on the backhand. And yet his body language remained implacable. He still believed. His elegant mind was focused not on defeat, but on the glimmer of hope that still hovered in the early afternoon haze.

The Swiss saved three break points, letting out the loudest self-affirmation of the match on the third, to plant a splinter in the mind of his opponent, as though saying: I am not going anywhere. You are going to have to win this. My will is unbreakable.

He took that set 6-3, triumphed in a thrilling tie-break 11-9 in the fourth and then, carried on the growing acclamation of a Centre Court crowd hypnotised what they were witnessing, took the decider 6-3 after a single break of serve.

There were many extraordinary passages of play as the contest reached its denouement, numerous detonations of genius, not least when Federer saved three match points in the fourth set, but none of this would have happened - not one thing - had the Swiss not found inspiration in that defining game.

“He is still fighting, still believing,” I wrote on my notepad as his shoulders refused to hunch. Jim Courier, the four-times grand-slam champion, said afterwards: “The three break points in a row in the third set were a chance for Cilic to deliver the knockout punch.”

Character. That is what we observed yesterday, above all else. The concept is elusive, and you can’t see it directly, but in almost everything Federer does, he reveals it. We focus so often on his artistry and his capacity for improvisation, and these qualities were in ample evidence, not least when he played a running backhand in the fourth game of the fourth set to create a sound not often heard on Centre Court: laughter. It was a peal of delight, an interlude that reminded us that for all the raw ambition from both players, this is still a game of geometry, angles and beauty.

Roger Federer celebrates after beating Marin Cilic in their Wimbledon quarter-final.

And yet Federer’s greatness is constructed upon something deeper: a single-minded belief that refuses to bend or waver, regardless of what is happening on the other side of the net. In the fourth game of the fourth set, he faced two more break points at 15-40, but jammed a second serve into the body, and then chanced a second serve wide to the forehand, averting the danger once more.

He won the game with an ace, directed on to the edge of the line, his willingness to flirt with such fine margins another reminder of his preternaturally steady nerve.

A few words on Cilic, because the Croatian was magnificent, too. He carried the burden of not merely playing against the most successful player to have flicked a racket, but the collective hopes of a vocal audience and millions watching around the world. People gasped at the power of his serving, but he also played with intelligence and courage, making Federer move, aware that the Swiss has lost a quantum of speed around the court. A beautifully delivered backhand down the line as the fourth set reached its climax was immaculately disguised.

Wimbledon 2016

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The tie-break was a classic. A backhand return by Federer at 4-3 touched the outside of the line, as confirmed by Hawk-Eye, leading to the biggest cheer of the match, and it seemed as if Federer had found momentum at last. But no: an uncharacteristic forehand miss at set point took the tie-break deeper, silence now descending between each point, nobody moving, nobody breathing, the tension seeming to reach into the grass.

Set points and match points were saved before Federer finally closed it out, and allowed himself a grim smile. The door, once shut tight, was now ajar. Cilic was generous in defeat. “He plays at a great level most of the time”, he said. “The physique he possesses, it’s great and allows him to play an aggressive game. Especially from the back, [it is difficult] to hurt him, he’s controlling most of the matches. He was serving great, so that helped him a bit to get a lot of points, a lot of free points.”

Federer’s form in the final set was not just sufficient to dispatch his opponent, but to send a signal of intent that an 18th grand-slam title, which so many commentators said would always elude him, is now a tangible prospect. That would take him four clear of Rafael Nadal and Pete Sampras, his nearest rivals, and equal another sporting titan, Jack Nicklaus, who won 18 golf majors.

“I remember being in trouble the whole time,” Federer said. “It was continuous, I don’t know, for an hour or two. After I lost the second set, anything you touch and do is crucial. You cannot afford any [mistakes].

When you’re saving match points, when you’re down two sets to love, three all, love-40, it’s a moment when it’s not in your control. But I fought, I tried, I believed. At the end I got it done.”

The Times