When Roger Federer's five-year winning streak at Wimbledon was halted by Rafael Nadal in 2008, he responded in the only way that he knew.
Standing in his way at the All England Club 12 months later was the popular Andy Roddick, who despite having pushed the Swiss star all the way, lost out 5–7, 7–6, 7–6, 3–6, 16–14 in an epic contest.
It meant that Federer went into the 2010 installment at SW19 as the defending champion and hot favourite to win the title for a seventh time.
However, from the very first round in London, Federer was not at his usual clinical best. He was taken the distance by Alejandro Falla and Ilija Bozoljac also claimed a set against the world number two.
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He did manage to negotiate a way through to the last eight, though, where he would take on Tomas Berdych three years ago today. While the Czech Republic number one was regarded as a very good player, he was not known for his credentials on grass.
The first set went the way of Berdych 6-4, but it appeared that normal service had been resumed when Federer levelled up proceedings with a 6-3 success.
Berdych was not to be denied, though, and he took advantage of Federer's uncharacteristically poor second serve to break in games two and six, thus claiming the third set 6-1 in just 27 minutes.
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The decisive moment came midway through the fourth set when Berdych battled back to save three breaks points before claiming a break of his own in the very next game, which set him up for a 6-4 success.
Having become the first Czech man to reach the semi-finals of Wimbledon since Ivan Lendl in 1990, Berdych told BBC Sport: "It's really tough to explain how I'm feeling, it's unbelievable. To play on this stadium against a player as great as Roger and to be standing here as the winner is amazing. This was the toughest match of my career to close out, it's a big step forward and I'm so happy.
"Right now it's really tough to think about my next match. I just want a few minutes and hours to enjoy this. Then I have to get ready and prepare for my next opponent."
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Meanwhile, a Wimbledon final would not contain Federer for the first time since 2003.
"I'm definitely struggling at the moment," said the then 29-year-old. "I'm looking forward to a rest and then I'll attack again in North America. Reaching the quarter-finals is a decent result. Obviously some people think it's shocking, but many players would die to play a Grand Slam quarter-final.
"I don't think I played poorly but he went after it. I was not able to defend well enough and he played well when he had to - it was brutal for me. Every time he had a chance, he took it."
Berdych went on to beat Novak Djokovic in the final four, but his hopes of a first Grand Slam title were dashed by Nadal, who won the trophy for a second time courtesy of a 6-4 7-5 6-4 victory.
Liam Apicella
