KING ROGER IS MURRAY'S NIGHTMARE.

After all the media frenzy surrounding Andy Murray's historic appearance in the Wimbledon Mens' Singles' Final, reality was restored yesterday when Roger Federer put the upstart Scot in his place. Britain's wait for a Wimbledon singles' winner goes on.

To be fair, Murray played well and provided more of a test for Federer than I'd expected. The first set began with a Murray break of serve, quickly neutralized by Federer, but it was Murray who surprisingly broke again to win the set, even though he'd struggled mightily to hold his own serve on more than occasion. The second set was more of the same, with both experiencing difficulty holding serve at times, though perhaps Murray had a slight advantage; this time, however, it was Federer who finally broke, surprisingly, to take the set and square the match. From there on the 6-time champion began to exert greater influence and Murray visibly started to wilt under the extreme pressure, not just of the match but of thwarted ambitions.

In the end, Federer took the third and fourth sets with a single break in each and showed just why he is such a great champion. Murray, for the first time in my experience, actually showed character and personality in the post-match torture inflicted by Sue Barker of the BBC. Clearly devastated by his loss, he fought back the tears and made a brief speech full of emotion and even with a little humour; for once, he came across as a real person. Strangely, Federer's after-match comments were relatively low-key though, as always perfectly structured; he was, perhaps, also overcome by the emotions of the day.

Murray played well, very well at times and, as Federer said at the end, he surely will win a Grand Slam before long. He was closer this time than in any of his previous final appearances, he has the weapons and needs only to truly believe.

Federer is, without doubt, the greatest male tennis player in the history of the game. His achievement in beating back the years and winning a seventh Wimbledon crown at the age of 30 is astonishing; his career record of winning 17 Grand Slam events and reaching 24 finals is unparalleled. Following his victory, Federer also returns to the number 1 position in the World rankings, overtaking the 2 men who seemed to have eclipsed him over the last 2 or 3 years, Nadal and Djokovic; he has now spent more time at the top of the rankings than anyone else, overtaking the record of the great Pete Sampras. There seems little more for this genius of the game to achieve and yet his appetite for further success remains undimmed.

Roll on the US Open !