2012 Wimbledon Championships – Men's singles final

Wimbledon 2012 Men's Final

Roger Federer (3) vs. Andy Murray (4)
Set 1 2 3 4 Roger Federer 4 7 6 6 Andy Murray 6 5 3 4
Date	Sunday July 8, 2012
Tournament	Wimbledon
Location	Wimbledon, England
World rankings	Roger Federer: 3 Andy Murray: 4
Roger Federer won his record seventh Wimbledon Championship

The 2012 Wimbledon Men's Singles final was the championship tennis match of the Men's Singles tournament at the 2012 Wimbledon Championships. It pitted six-time champion Roger Federer and Andy Murray against each other in a Grand Slam final for the third time. After 3 hours and 24 minutes, Federer emerged victorious 4–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–4.

This match was historic on many fronts as it saw Federer win a record-shattering seventeenth major title and a record-tying seventh Wimbledon championship. The victory was also historic as it caused Federer to depose Novak Djokovic as World No. 1 and break Sampras' record of 286 weeks at the summit of men's tennis (Federer had been just one week short when he lost the number one ranking in June 2010).^[1] Additionally, Murray became the first British man to reach the final of Wimbledon since 1938, and was seeking to be the first British Wimbledon champion since 1936.

Background

Roger Federer entered the match as the all-time Grandslam champion with a record of sixteen major titles, although he had not won any in the last two and a half years dating back to the 2010 Australian Open. Andy Murray had not yet won a single major title and was looking to avoid being the first male player since his coach Ivan Lendl to lose his first four finals.

The 2012 Wimbledon Men's Singles final was the third Grandslam final that Federer and Murray had contested. Federer had won both previous finals at the 2008 US Open and the 2010 Australian Open.

Since Federer's last victory at the 2010 Australian Open, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic had combined to win the last nine major tournaments and had competed head-to-head in the last four consecutive finals. Nadal, however, had suffered a second round defeat to world no. 100 Lukas Rosol. Federer on the other hand, had to battle through an epic five-set encounter in the third round against Frenchman Julien Benneteau where he survived 4–6, 6–7, 6–2, 7–6, 6–1.^[2] Federer would go on to beat the world no. 1 and defending champion Djokovic in the semifinals to reach the Wimbledon final for a record eighth appearance.^[3]

Match details

The chair umpire was Enric Molina of Spain.

The players traded breaks early in the first set before Murray broke Federer in the ninth game and served out the set at 6–4. Murray had multiple chances to break throughout the beginning of the second set, but the six-time champion fought off all four break points. Federer broke Murray at 6-5 with a stunning drop volley winner on set point.^[4] But rain stopped play once again early in the third set and play was suspended for half an hour as the roof was closed for the first time for a Wimbledon final. The crucial moment came in the sixth game of the third set which lasted 20 minutes and saw ten deuces, with Federer finally converting the break on his sixth opportunity.^[5] Federer earned a break early in the fourth set and served the match out for his seventh Wimbledon Championship 4–6, 7–5, 6–3, 6–4.

Statistics

Category	Federer	Murray
1st Serve %	68%	56%
Aces	12	16
Double Faults	3	1
Winners	62	46
Unforced Errors	38	25
Winners-UFEs	+25	+21
Winning % on 1st Serve	75%	69%
Winning % on 2nd Serve	48%	47%
Receiving Points Won	40%	32%
Break Point Conversions	4/12 (33%)	2/7 (28%)
Net Approaches Won	53/68 (78%)	24/39 (62%)
Total Points Won	151	137
Fastest Serve	130 mph	133 mph
Average 1st Serve Speed	116 mph	121 mph
Average 2nd Serve Speed	98 mph	88 mph

_Source

Significance

The match had serious historic ramifications for the tennis world as it enabled Federer to break three of the sport's most prestigious all-time records.

With his victory Federer broke his own all-time record of Grand Slams setting the new mark at seventeen. He also tied Pete Sampras for the most Wimbledon singles titles with seven.^[6] Federer secured the world no. 1 position for the first time since June 2010 which enabled him to pass Sampras and set the record for most weeks at the summit of men's tennis. Federer went on to spend an additional 17 weeks at world no. 1 and set the all-time record at 302 weeks.^[7] Murray became the first Briton to make the Wimbledon final since 1938 and managed to win a set for the first time in his four finals appearances. He would go on to win the London Olympics and the US Open later in the year.

This was the first final to be played under the new retractable roof that was originally installed in 2009.^[8] The television ratings in the United Kingdom set a record with 16.9 million viewers, which was the highest Wimbledon final viewership since accurate statistics began in 1990.^[9] In the United States it scored the second largest ratings for a Wimbledon final in the last decade behind only 2009 when Federer beat American Andy Roddick 16-14 in an epic fifth set.^[10]

See also

• Federer–Murray rivalry

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roger Federer.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Andy Murray.

• Head to Head player details at the ATP's official site