5-7, 7-6 (8-6), 7-6 (7-5), 3-6, 16-14

I don't get to watch much television these days. Over the past few months, since my son learned how to operate the DVD player and ask for movies, my viewing has been limited to things like Shrek, Madagascar, Cars, Meet the Robinsons...you get the point.

Somehow, though, I wrested control of the remote from the little one on Sunday morning. My wife reminded me about the Wimbledon final (via a friend's Facebook status that mentioned how great the battle was between Federer and Roddick) and I turned the channel to NBC in the fifth set with the score 10-9 in favor of Federer.

It's amazing how much Federer's entire demeanor changes when Rafael Nadal is out of the picture. At both the French Open and Wimbledon, he had the appearance of a man who knew that he was, by a longshot, the best player in the building. When Nadal is the opponent, or looming further on down the draw, Federer looks nervous, his concentration starts to crack, he begins to show emotion. He becomes...human.

Without Nadal's presence to weigh him down, Federer's win was almost a foregone conclusion. Somehow, from the time I turned the television on, I knew he was going to beat Roddick. It was the same feeling he used to conjure up in the past, the same feeling he still conjures up whenever he plays anyone except Rafael Nadal. There was just a sense that he was playing his game, looking for Roddick to make a mistake, and willing to wait as long as possible for that to happen.

Eventually, of course, it did; Federer broke Roddick's serve and held his own, which was all he needed to take home his sixth Wimbledon title in seven years. (A thought about last year's final: if memory serves, the match was delayed at least twice by rain, allowing Nadal the opportunity to briefly rest his damaged knees. What if the retractable roof, new to this year's tournament, was in place last year? Might Federer have physically outlasted Nadal for the title, and might his streak now be at seven?)

One thing I will say about Roddick: his spirit and attitude were remarkable. While Federer has always exuded an air of calm during his matches, not matter the circumstances (again, except when he faces Nadal), Roddick has never seemed able to find a consistent oncourt style. My previous most prominent memory of him was from a Grand Slam final a few years ago, maybe the 2006 U.S. Open, against Federer. Every time he won a point, Roddick stormed around the court, ranting and raving and shouting like a madman. It seemed a calculated attempt to draw the home crowd into it and perhaps throw Federer off his game (I read later that Jimmy Connors, who I think was coaching Roddick at the time, used to do the same thing during his playing days), but all it did was waste precious energy. When playing Federer, I think, you need to conserve every possible ounce of energy and use it on the court.

On Sunday, however, Roddick just went about his business. Most players would have folded far earlier, but he held on for as long as possible, even coming close to breaking Federer's serve late in the fifth set. And after the match, while clearly upset with the loss, he was gracious in defeat. My favorite moment came when Federer said in the post-match interview that he knew what Roddick was feeling because he had lost in a similar manner last year. From halfway across the court, Roddick yelled back, "Yeah, but you had already won it five times!"

Bottom line, I'm glad I got the chance to catch the end of this classic match. I even recorded the ending (only the last game, but still) and can transfer it to VHS if I want, which is more than I can say for last year's epic. That match went away when we moved and had to get a different DVR unit (although I think you can buy it from Wimbledon.org for $19.99 or something).