Wimbledon 2012 Final: History beckons Federer, Murray

As Roger Federer and Andy Murray take to the Centre Court on Sunday for the Wimbledon 2012 final, history and records beckons both the players. While a win for Andy Murray will make him the first British man since Fred Perry in 1936 to win the Wimbledon, a win for Roger Federer would mean much more – a record seventh title to equal Pete Sampras’ record for the most titles at the Wimbledon, and a total of 17 Grand Slams in all, another record. The win will also make Federer regain the World No. 1 spot from Novak Djokovic, and equal another of Sampras` record - 286 weeks as the top-ranked player. However, the race to the final has not been an easy ride for the both the players. Roger Federer, considered by critics and players as the greatest player to have graced the game, had to undergo both physical and mental hardships before making it to his Wimbledon final No. 8. While he has been suffering from back pain and had to even take a break between a game for treatment, perhaps, his toughest challenge was to come back from two sets down against J. Benneteau of France in the 3rd round to win 4-6, 6-7, 6-2, 7-6, 6-1, a classic five setter game, worthy of a final. Then, one of the final hurdles was to beat world No. 1, Novak Djokovic in the semi-final 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. Djokovic had beaten him six times in their last seven meetings, the last being the semi-final at the Roland Garros in Paris where he was beaten in straight sets by the Serbian. Therefore, a win here at the Centre Court of the Wimbledon 2012 final would mean the world for Federer who has not won a Grand Slam since the Australian Open in 2010. On the other hand, history and record also beckons the Scot, Andy Murray. While he became the first British man since 1938 to enter the final of the Wimbledon, a win would also mean he would be the first Briton to win the Wimbledon title since Fred Perry in 1936. Murray’s road to the final hasn’t been an easy one either with the pressure of an entire nation riding on him besides having to compete against tough opponents. However, his final hurdle to the final, with a win over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in four sets with a scorecard of 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 may have now given him a gigantic boost. And as both players head into the Wimbledon 2012 final, pressure will be on both players as they plan to create a record of their own. Head to head, Murray leads 8-7 but in a Grand Slam final, Federer leads 2-0, all meetings in hard court – which makes the Wimbledon meet their first on grass court. However, whatever the outcome of the final, one thing is for sure: history is to be created and they stand in each other’s path.