Roger Federer defeatedAndy Roddick inthe final, 5–7, 7–6(8–6), 7–6(7–5), 3–6, 16–14 to win the gentlemen's singles tennis title at the2009 Wimbledon Championships.[1] It was his sixthWimbledon title and record 15thmajor men's singles title overall, breakingPete Sampras' all-time record. It was the longest men's singles major final (in terms of games played) in history with 77 games, breaking the record of 71 games from the1927 Australian Championships. The match also had the longest fifth set (16–14) in a major men's singles final, surpassing the 11–9 fifth set in the1927 French Championships final.[2] The match lasted 4 hours and 17 minutes, and the fifth set alone lasted 95 minutes.[3] It was a rematch of the2004 and2005 finals, where Federer also beat Roddick to win the title. This was Federer's eleventhgrass court men's singles title, surpassing Sampras'Open Era record. Notably, Roddick lost despite having his serve broken only once, in the last game of the match. By winning the title, Federer regained theworld No. 1 singles ranking, and completed theChannel Slam.
Rafael Nadal was the reigning champion, but withdrew from the tournament due to kneetendinitis.[4] This would be the only edition of the tournament between 2006 and 2011 not to feature Nadal in the final.
Roddick's appearance in the final would be the last time an American man reached a major singles final until the2024 US Open, 15 years later. This was the first major appearance of futureATP Finals championGrigor Dimitrov, who retired in the first round againstIgor Kunitsyn.