Top seed Roger Federer admitted he "got lucky" after surviving a massive first-round scare against Alejandro Falla.
Defending champ says tough match was just what he needed
Roger Federer admitted he "got lucky" after surviving a massive first-round scare against Alejandro Falla at Wimbledon.
The defending champion admitted he feared the worse when he trailed the little-known Colombian by two sets before progressing in five, winning 5-7 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7/1) 6-0.
Falla had two great chances to finish the match off and create arguably the greatest upset in Wimbledon history.
At 4-4 in the third set he led 0-40 on the Federer serve only for the Swiss to hold and he then served for the match in the fourth.
Federer pinpointed the initial moment as the time he felt his chance of a record-equalling seventh title were slipping away - only for luck to kick in.
"That was the moment I felt was the toughest because if I wouldn't have come out of that game, I don't think I would have broken the next one," he said.
"My whole game was sort of in disarray. I was just hoping that I could get three quick serves to come back. But I had to come up with some passing shots, some scrambling shots.
"There was definitely a bit of luck involved there. It's normal with the chances he had, the way I came out of this match. I definitely got lucky. But that's how it goes sometimes."
Despite his surprisingly slack start to the tournament, Federer now feels he can go from strength to strength, saying a hard match was exactly what he needed.
Match points
"I've lost a few matches this season with match points," he added. "This is definitely the kind of match I needed. You can't win them all when they're that close, because they're being played on a couple of points here or there.
"One thing you can do is push the luck on your side. That's not something I have been doing maybe enough the last few months. I'm happy today I gave myself a chance."
Speaking about the second chance to close out, Falla admitted the nerves had got to him as he prepared for the biggest game of his life.
"I was thinking that I have a big opportunity to beat Federer here," he said. "And I just doubted a little bit at that moment for the first two points. And then he played good points."
Despite the nature of the defeat, Falla took huge pride in his performance, especially as the prospect of playing Federer for a third consecutive tournament had left him bemoaning his luck.
"Everybody wants to play Federer, but three times in one month is a lot," said the Colombian. "I knew I was playing very well, I just wanted to go out and play my best. I am happy because I played a great match.
"Today is a special day for me in tennis, even if I lost that match. I can say I was serving for the match against Federer. Many players would like to be in that situation."
Federer was fulsome in his praise for Falla, adding: "He played a great match. I hope he's not too disappointed because I thought he played great. He was a very tough opponent."
