Roger Federer became the first man to win Wimbledon eight times and extended his record to 19 Grand Slam titles with victory over Croatia’s Marin Cilic.
Federer moved ahead of Britain’s William Renshaw and American Pete Sampras to claim his eighth title at the All England Club and his first since 2012 with a straightforward 6-3 6-1 6-4 success in one hour and 41 minutes.
“I always believed that I could come back and do it again. And if you believe, you can go really far in your life and I did that,” Federer said. “And I’m happy I kept on believing and dreaming and here I am today for the eighth. It’s fantastic.”
He has not dropped a set all tournament and victory over Croatian giant Cilic gave him a 19th career Grand Slam title and second in three majors this year after sweeping to a fifth Australian Open in January following a six-month absence.
“I’ve got to take more time off! I’ll be gone again for the next six months! I don’t know if it will work as well again,” Federer said with a grin.
The tournament favourite from the outset, he was rarely troubled over the course of seven matches, and Cilic was not in the condition to provide a serious test.
“I never give up in a match. I gave it my best – it’s all I can do,” Cilic said afterwards.
Federer was playing in his 11th Wimbledon final and Cilic his first, and the gap in experience showed from the early stages.
