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Federer: Struggled in fading light
Rafael Nadal described his Wimbledon victory as "unbelievable" after he dethroned grasscourt king Roger Federer in one of the all-time great finals.
Nadal beat five-time champion Federer 6-4 6-4 6-7 (5/7) 6-7 (8/10) 9-7 after four hours and 48 minutes of pulsating action.
The scoreboard twinkled 9.16pm when Nadal clinched victory to become the first Spaniard in 42 years to claim the title in SW19.
Nadal said: "I am very happy to have a title here at Wimbledon. When I was a kid I dreamed of playing here but to win here is unbelievable. The Spanish do not have a lot of titles here.
"For me it is emotional and probably the best match (I have played). It was the final of Wimbledon and I had to fight all the time.''
The 22-year-old, who also becomes the first player since Bjorn Borg in 1980 to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year, added: "I love to play on this surface.
"You can play very aggressive. I have a lot of respect for Federer and admire him a lot.''
Meanwhile, Federer hinted that the match should not have continued in the fading light.
Brutal
He said: "I would have said something if I'd broken back to eight-all. It would have been brutal for the fans and us to come back tomorrow but it was rough on me to lose the biggest tournament in the world because of the light.
"It was not a whole lot of fun, but that's the way it is. It's over, what's the point in arguing about it? But it is probably my hardest loss by far.''
The Swiss ace added: "Later on in life I'll think it was a great match to be part of but it doesn't feel so good now. I played well but missed too many chances in the first two sets but I'm happy with the way I fought.
"He served well and played well and I pushed him to the edge but he deserved to win.''
Nadal admitted he too had struggled in the fading light on Centre Court and said: "In the last game I didn't see nothing. It was unbelievable."
And he agreed with Federer, saying: "I thought we would have to stop if I lost that last game.''
