Spanish phenom Rafael Nadal has won the 2008 Wimbledon Championship for the first time today, and boy was it a thriller! After going up 2 sets to love, Nadal's competitor, the legendary Roger Federer, fought back to win two straight tiebreakers, forcing a fifth set. Last year, Nadal took Federer to 5 at Wimbledon, but eventually succumbed. This year, however, was different as you could sense Nadal's confidence and see the slow erosion of Federer's faith in his own ability to win. Despite Federer's reliance on a successful huge first serve, it was Nadal's match to win, which he finally did in the no-breakers 5th, 9-7. This represents Nadal's first Grand Slam championship on a surface other than clay (he's undefeated at the French Open), and it represents the first time since Bjorn Borg that a player has won the French and Wimbledon back-to-back. It's now on to the US Open Series. Let's hope that Nadal can bring his energetic pace to the hard courts!
Final score was 6-4, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6, 9-7. Phenomenal!!!
Wimbledon
ATP
