Inland Waterways » -5 16th

LONDON -- Novak Djokovics large lead in the rollicking Wimbledon final was slipping away, due in no small part to Roger Federers regal presence and resurgent play. No man has won tennis oldest major tournament more often than Federer, and he was not about to let it go easily. Djokovic went from being a point from victory in the fourth set to suddenly caught in the crucible of a fifth, and knew all too well that he had come up short in recent Grand Slam title matches. Steeling himself when he so desperately needed to, Serbias Djokovic held on for a 6-7 (7), 6-4, 7-6 (4), 5-7, 6-4 victory after nearly four hours of momentum shifts Sunday to win Wimbledon for the second time -- and deny Switzerlands Federer what would have been a record eighth championship at the All England Club. "I could have easily lost my concentration in the fifth and just handed him the win. But I didnt, and thats why this win has a special importance to me, mentally," Djokovic said. "I managed to not just win against my opponent, but win against myself, as well, and find that inner strength." Cradling his trophy during the post-match ceremony, Djokovic addressed Federer directly, saying: "I respect your career and everything you have done. And thank you for letting me win today." Even Federer had to smile at that line. Truth is, Djokovic deserved plenty of credit for figuring out a way to raise his Grand Slam total to seven titles and allows him to overtake Rafael Nadal at No. 1 in the rankings. "Novak deserved it at the end, clearly," said Federer, who hadnt been to a Grand Slam final since winning his 17th major at Wimbledon in 2012, "but it was extremely close." Federer, who turns 33 next month, won 88 of 89 service games through the semifinals and produced 29 aces in the final, but Djokovic broke him four times. Federer went to the net aggressively, only to see Djokovic zoom more than a dozen passing shots past him. And with most of the Centre Court crowd of about 15,000 raucously cheering for Federer, the 27-year-old Djokovic kept believing in himself. That part might have been the most difficult, given that Djokovic lost his past three major finals, and five of his past six, including against Andy Murray at Wimbledon last year, and against Nadal at the French Open last month. "Started doubting, of course, a little bit," Djokovic said. "I needed this win a lot." Boris Becker, the three-time Wimbledon champion who began coaching Djokovic this season, called the new champion "the biggest competitor" and praised "his sense of not giving up, giving it always another try." "It couldve gone either way in the fifth set," said Becker, whose former rival as a player, Stefan Edberg, coaches Federer. "Novak finds another way. He digs deep and finds another way." Djokovic built a 5-2 lead in the fourth set and served for the championship at 5-3. But Federer broke there for the first time all afternoon, smacking a forehand winner as Djokovic slipped and fell on a patch of brown dirt. Djokovic took a nastier tumble in the second set, hurting his left leg and prompting the first of two medical timeouts; he got his right calf massaged by a trainer in the fifth. With Federer serving at 5-4 in the fourth, he double-faulted to 30-all, then netted a backhand for 30-40 -- handing Djokovic a match point. Federer hit a 118 mph (190 kph) serve that was called out, but he challenged the ruling, and the replay showed the ball touched a line for an ace. That was part of Federers five-game run to force a fifth set. It would be another 42 minutes until Djokovic again stood so close to triumph. "Cant believe I made it to five," Federer said. "Wasnt looking good there for a while." In truth, after so much drama, the ending was anticlimactic. Trailing 5-4 but serving, Federer missed four groundstrokes, pushing a backhand into the net on Djokovics second match point. Victory his, Djokovic knelt on the most hallowed tennis court in the world, plucked a blade of grass and shoved it in his mouth, just as he did after his 2011 Wimbledon title. He dedicated this victory to his pregnant fiancee "and our future baby," and to Jelena Gencic, his first tennis coach, who died last year. "This is the best tournament in the world, the most valuable one," Djokovic said. "The first tennis match that I ever (saw) in my life, when I was 5 years old, was Wimbledon, and that image stuck (in) my mind." Custom Oakland Raiders Jerseys . Beanballs were the theme Friday night as the Red Sox and Rays had another AL East rumble, with Boston earning a 3-2 victory on A. 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I did not actually see any of the shots in the game until I got home and watched the video.PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. - Martin Kaymer reached the top of golf and wondered how he got there. He won his first major at the 2010 PGA Championship. He reached No. 1 in the world six months later. And then he realized his game would not be good enough to stay there. Kaymer wasnt much different from Tiger Woods, who overhauled his swing not long after a record-setting performance in the 1997 Masters. Kaymer was concerned about being a one-dimensional player — his primary shot was a fade — especially if he wanted to contend at Augusta National and other majors. He just didnt realize it would take this long. Halfway through his victory at The Players Championship, he thought back to the time he put in on his game. "All that work, all the hours," Kaymer said. "When you are standing on the range for six, seven hours, hitting the same shot, the same drill, you feel like it should be enough. You just dont want to be there at one stage because its so much. And its a little boring as well. But you know long term, it will become something good." It paid off in a big way last week at The Players, the next best thing to a major. The 29-year-old German tied the course record with a 63 on Thursday and was never behind after any round the rest of the way. His biggest challenge Sunday was when he had to return from a 90-minute storm delay and finish four holes in which he had everything to lose. Even with a double bogey that cut his lead to one shot, he didnt feel as if the tournament were slipping away. About the only thing that annoyed him was that "soft egg" moment to the left the green on the par-5 16th. Kaymer had spoken all week about being confident enough in his swing to stop thinking about the mechanics and to start playing by feel. He talked about hitting the right shot — the brave shot — not the easy one. He kept using the word, "wimp," until he jokingly was asked the German word for it. "Weiches ei," he replied in his native language. And then he offered that polite smile and added the English translation. "Its soft egg." Instead of chipping on the 16th, Kaymer decided to use a putter. He didnt hit it nearly hard enough, so instead of having a ggood chance at birdie, he had to two-putt from over 30 feet just to make par and keep his one-shot lead.dddddddddddd He wound up with one of the craziest pars ever on the island green at the par-3 17th, which ended with a 30-foot putt that broke some 8 feet to the right. And he collected the crystal trophy, along with the $1.8 million check from the richest purse on the PGA Tour. But that wimpy decision on the 16th gnawed at him even in victory. He wants perfection. "Its not the right thing to putt it. Its a soft egg," he said. "The swing is all good. Im happy the way that it works out and the way I go. Everything is fine, and Im really happy about this. But those things ... on 16, I was not true to myself, and thats painful. It really is. Because its just not right. "You can think, I won the golf tournament. I should be happy," he said. "And Im very, very happy about this. But those are things I would like to improve for the future." His future again looks bright. Kaymer now has won 14 times around the world. Even as he was retooling his swing with longtime coach Gunter Kessler, he managed to win a World Golf Championship in Shanghai by closing with a 63. Having barely made a Ryder Cup team in 2012 when Europe would have been better off without him because of his form, Kaymer still had enough left to beat Steve Stricker in the match that assured Europe would keep the cup. And he won at the end of last year in South Africa. But it means more to have beaten one of the strongest fields in golf, and to have conquered a course on the TPC Sawgrass that punishes the slightest mistake. Kaymer never really flinched all week. He put his name out front and stayed there. Darren Clarke noticed it in the second round. Kaymer didnt hit it his best that day, but he scored. Thats the golf Clarke remembered. "Hes a proper golfer this one," Clarke said. "Hes a finely tuned engineer." Perhaps he is ready to take his place among the best in the game. The major season is just getting started. "Now its important that you dont stop," he said. "Its very easy to just be happy now, relax and let things happen. But now its a time we have to work even harder." 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