World No. 1 player Roger Federer of Switzerland clinched his
12th Grand Slam title Sunday by taking out Serbia's Novak Djokovic
7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-2) and 6-4 in the men's single final of the 2007
US Open.?
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Roger Federer of
Switzerland poses with the trophy after winning his match against
Novak Djokovic of Serbia in the men's final of the U.S. Open tennis
tournament in Flushing Meadows, New York, Sept. 9, 2007.
With his victory over Djokovic, Federer became the first man in
the Open Era to capture four consecutive US Open singles titles,
and the first man in history to do so since Bill Tilden
accomplished the monumental feat between 1920 and 1923.
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Top seed Federer is in second place among Open Era Grand Slam
leaders, tied with Roy Emerson; remaining in first place is Peter
Sampras, who won a total of 14 major singles titles.
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"I think about it a lot now. To come so close at my age is
fantastic, and I hope to break it," said Federer.
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Asked how many Slams he can win, he said: "I don't know. I hope
more than Pete."?
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Roger Federer of
Switzerland celebrates after winning his match against Novak
Djokovic of Serbia in the men's final of the U.S. Open tennis
tournament in Flushing Meadows, New York, Sept. 9, 2007.
The Swiss superstar actually began rewriting history with his
semifinal win over Russian Nikolay Davydenko, extending his own
record of most consecutive Grand Slam finals to 10. He is also the
first man to reach all four Grand Slam finals in a calendar year
for two years in a row.
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The 20-year-old Djokovic, in his first Slam final, wasted a total
of seven set points in the opening two sets when he led at 6-5. In
the first he held five set points. In the second, he held
two.
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"He knows what it feels like to be in that kind of situation. He
knows how to cope with the pressure," said Djokovic, "For me, this
is something new."
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Djokovic had one last chance to catch back, getting to love-40 when
his rival served at 2-2 in the third set. But the Swiss took five
points in a row, making the Serbian 2-for-9 on break chances.
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"I have to look positive. Next time I hope I'm going to hold that
trophy," said Djokovic.
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Having come into the US Open as the US Open Series winner, Federer
takes home a US$1 million bonus, which brings his total prize money
for the championship run to US$2.4 million, the largest payout in
the history of the sport.
(Xinhua News Agency September 10, 2007)
