As his opponent's final overhead return sailed into the net on match point, Roger Federer crumbled to the court in a mixture of boundless euphoria and downright relief - putting an exclamation point on his 13th Grand Slam win after a 6-2, 7-5, 6-2 trouncing of Scottish upstart, Andy Murray.
And just like that: the Man was back.
Not that he had really gone anywhere. Notwithstanding the grumblings of most "experts" and tennis fans worldwide, Federer was quietly having a terrific season under anyone's standards except his own. To wit, in the year's three Grand Slams coming into New York, he had made two finals and one semi-final - that one after battling a month-long bout with mononucleosis at the year's outset.
But after losing an epic match against Rafael Nadal in the Wimbledon final (widely considered the greatest match ever played), Federer seemed to sleep-walk through the summer hardcourt season - including a disappointing quarterfinal loss to James Blake at the Olympics. He did, however, salvage his Beijing experience by winning the gold medal in the men's doubles with countryman, Stanislav Wawrinka.
That win, according to Federer, served to lift his spirits and injected him with some much-needed confidence heading in the year's final Grand Slam. Federer has always enjoyed playing on Broadway - he has stated he feels like a New Yorker at times - and perhaps what he really needed was another taste of the bright lights and center stage to lift his game back to its normally transcendent heights. After all, he was coming in as the four-time defending champion and riding a 27-match winning streak at the Open.
Indeed, as the fortnight progressed, Federer seemed to re-discover his game. He breezed past the first three rounds without dropping a set. His lethal forehand - the linchpin of his offensive attack, which had failed him at crucial times all year, returned with frightening potency. His underrated footwork, notably absent during the clay court season, resurfaced as Federer glided effortlessly over these hard courts like a streamlined gazelle.
His four-set demolition of last year's finalist, Novak Djockovic, in the semi-finals signalled to the tennis world that he was back in top form. Federer himself seemed to sense it as well. The normally stoic Swiss star began flashing his emotions and punctuated winning key points with hearty fist pumps and joyous shouts throughout the tournament. His increasingly improved play through the last week was only a harbinger of things to come in the final.
Tropical Storm Hanna forced the USTA to push the men's final from its normal Sunday date to Monday. But it was Federer's game that caused the most uncomfortable climate for first-time Grand Slam finalist Murray. Cracking lightning bolt serves and thunder-clap forehands from start to finish, the venerable champion simply overwhelmed the young up-start in just under two hours.
"It was a dominant performance," reflected U.S. Davis Cup captain, Patrick McEnroe.
With this win, his 13th major tournament victory in the last five years, Federer cemented his legacy as perhaps the best player to ever pick up a tennis racket.
His opponent in the final, for one, wouldn't argue.
"I ran into today, in my estimation, the greatest player ever to play," said Andy Murray in his on-court post-match interview.
Entering the 2008 season, many felt it was a foregone conclusion that Federer would surpass, or at least match, Pete Sampras's record of 14 Grand Slam singles titles. After the year's final Grand Slam, Federer still trails Sampras by one.
But with this victory, he left no doubt that he has in fact returned to top form - a scary proposition for the rest of the men's tour heading into 2009. The record seems as vulnerable as ever.
Federer himself, with a new-found confidence and renewed swagger, promised, "I'm not going to stop at 13 for sure."
This time, nobody can doubt him.
All Hail the King.
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