Roddick Valiant in Defeat, Federer Takes Place in History

by Greg CouchFiled under: Wimbledon, ATPI have never seen such pain in an athlete's eyes. Did you see Andy Roddick's eyes, wide open, and something deep pleading to come out?"No," he said to the crowd afterward, "I'm one of the lucky few that gets cheered for."And he thanked the fans.Yes, Roger Federer had just won Wimbledon. He beat Roddick 5-7, 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 16-14 Sunday for his record-breaking 15th major title.That's right, the last set was 16-14, or 10 games longer than any previous fifth set in a major. Turns out that while this wasn't quite the drama or quality of last year's final, Rafael Nadal didn't have to be here for a classic Wimbledon. Instead, Pete Sampras, who had won 14 majors, was there. And Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg. History came together to watch history being made.Roddick Valiant in Defeat, Federer Takes Place in History originally appeared on Fanhouse Tennis on Sun, 05 Jul 2009 18:41:00 EDT . Please se...