Wimbledon final photos

Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer arrive on Centre Court for one of the most hotly-anticipated finals in recent years

The Swiss gets the match under way and, despite a couple of errors, holds his serve to take the first game

Nadal lacks the same composure and loses his first two service games to trail 4-0 in a whirlwind first set

The world number one's awesome early form is translated into a 6-0 first-set victory, to stun his rival and the crowd

After the worst possible start, the young Spaniard takes a moment to regroup and plan his approach to the second set

The new strategy pays off with an instant break of serve, to give Nadal hope of getting back into the match

Serving for the set at 5-4, Nadal has a wobble and sees Federer's persistence rewarded with a break to level matters

Desperate not to lose further ground, the world number two forces a tie-break and moves into a 3-1 lead

Unfazed by the deficit, an unflappable Federer draws on his experience to win the decider 7-5 and take a two-set lead

The third set is a far tighter affair with few errors committed as the players hold serve to set up another tie-break

Once again, Nadal powers into a commanding lead to put real pressure on the champion and give himself a fighting chance

This time the advantage is not squandered as Federer succumbs 7-2 to put the challenger back in contention

Sadly for Nadal, this only seems to inspire Federer who breaks in the fourth and sixth games to move to the brink of victory

With the Swiss serving for the championship, Nadal breaks to raise his hopes but he still has a lot to do to avoid defeat

A Federer collapse fails to ensue and he comfortably serves out a 6-0 7-6 6-7 6-3 victory

His fourth consecutive title confirms him as one of the greats and moves him closer to legends Pete Sampras and Bjorn Borg

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