Few expected the men's singles final at Wimbledon 2009 to live up to the gift that was the 2008 final.
It did.
Roddick surprised Federer in the opening set, first sticking with him all the way then snatching the set from under the second-seed's nose.
Drama followed in the fiercely contested second set, which went to a tiebreak. Roddick raced to a 6-2 lead and was on the verge of a shock two sets to nil lead. What happened next will haunt the American for decades to come.
Federer reeled off the next 6 points to take the tiebreak 8-6 as the hapless Roddick watched on in horror.
It looked as if Federer would run away with the match from here. The Swiss took the third set but Roddick struck back in the fourth to square the ledger at two sets apiece.
The fifth and final set would create history in more ways than one.
The pair clashed for more than four hours and gave us the longest ever deciding set in a Wimbledon final - 30 games and 95 minutes of unrelenting tennis.
Eventually, however, someone had to give, and it turned out to be Roddick.
Ultimately it came down to a battle of the serves with Federer finally breaking the impenetrable Roddick serve in the final game of the match.
Federer now stands alone with 15 major titles to his name - more than any other man. And the Fed Express hasn't finished yet. With his sights turning towards Flushing Meadows and number 16, who knows how many majors the reinstated world No.1 will claim.
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