Roger Federer became the first man to win 20 Grand Slam tennis singles titles Sunday, defeating Marin Cilic 6-2, 6-7 (7-5), 6-3, 6-1, 6-1 to capture his record-tying sixth Australian Open championship.

Federer tied Roy Emerson and Novak Djokovic with his sixth Australian crown and has won three of the last five major tournaments, ESPN reported.

“I'm so happy. It's unbelievable,” said Federer, who broke down in tears after the victory. “Of course, winning is an absolute dream come true -- the fairy tale continues for me.

“After the great year I had last year, it's incredible.”

In addition to his six Australian Open titles, Federer’s Grand Slam résumé includes eight Wimbledon titles, five U.S. Open championships and one French Open title.

Sunday’s victory meant that Federer, at 36 years and 173 days, is the second-oldest man to win a Grand Slam title in the Open era. Ken Rosewall won the 1972 Australian Open when he was 37.

Federer has spent 302 weeks ranked No. 1 in the world during his career and now owns 96 titles.

“Big congratulations to Roger and his team -- it's amazing what you guys do," Cilic said. "It was an amazing journey for me to come here to the final. I had a slight chance at the beginning of the fifth (set), but Roger played a great fifth set.”

Federer now owns a 9-1 record against Cilic, including a victory in last year’s Wimbledon final.

Tennis greats weighed in with their congratulations.

Tennis greats weighed in with their congratulations.

“Nobody makes me cry like Roger Federer,” tweeted Chris Evert, an 18-time Grand Slam winner and two-time Australian Open women’s singles title winner. “No one. … there is no one like him.”

“Congratulations Roger -- the GOAT!!” tweeted Martina Navratilova, another 18-time Grand Slam champion who won three women’s titles in Australia.

Billie Jean King added her best wishes as well, tweeting “Congratulations to @rogerfederer, @AustralianOpen men’s singles champion and GOAT!”

Meanwhile, Rod Laver, who won 11 Grand Slams and three titles in his native Australia, called the six Australian titles won by Federer, Emerson and Djokovic as “Astonishing then, incredible now.” </s> Roger Federer captured his sixth Australian Open title on Sunday, defeating No. 6 Marin Cilic in five sets.

Federer and Cilic battle for three hours and three minutes before the Swiss prevailed 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 to win a record 20th Grand Slam title.

Here's how the tennis world reacted to Federer's title.

Of course, even Federer himself took to Twitter to celebrate his victory in Melbourne: </s> Melbourne: Even by Roger Federer's standards, his path to a 30th grand slam final has been a breeze but things are about to hot up as Croatian Marin Cilic prepares to try to stop the Swiss claiming a sixth Australian Open title on Sunday.

Federer has only been extended past the two-hour mark twice in reaching his seventh final in Melbourne and even those two matches this week against unseeded Marton Fucsovics and Tomas Berdych were relatively straightforward straight-sets wins.

Here's a look at some of the interesting facts and figures ahead of the much-awaited final:

Roger Federer and Marin Cilic will be playing each other in their second Grand Slam final. The Swiss great breezed past the Croatian in straight sets at last year's Wimbledon final but a tearful Cilic played in pain from a nasty foot blister. He had previously conquered Federer in three sets in the semi-finals on the way to his 2014 US Open triumph. Overall, Federer leads 8-1, and 3-1 at Slams.

Cilic is the first Croatian man or woman to play in an Australian Open final and is bidding to become the country's first multiple Major winner ahead of Goran Ivanisevic and Iva Majoli, who won one each. Ivanisevic has played in more major finals — four to Cilic's three.

If Federer wins the final in straight sets he will equal Bjorn Borg and Rafael Nadal for most Grand Slam titles at three without dropping a set through the tournament. It would be the second time for Federer at the Australian Open after powering through the 2007 event without losing a set.

Age shall not weary them

Federer at 36 is bidding to win a third major title after turning 35. Australian great Ken Rosewall is the only other man to have won a Slam title after his 35th birthday in the post-1968 Open Era, at 37 years old in the 1972 Australian Open.

Federer and Cilic practised together last month when they discovered, by accident, they were holidaying together in the Maldives. “It was just the two of us and we were both looking for a hitting partner and it happened that we were there,” Federer said. "We actually went to practice twice for 45 minutes. It was great fun. No coaches, no nothing, just the two of us on the court hitting balls. It was just nice and laid-back."

Federer is aiming to add to his five Australian Open titles and in the process win a record 20th Grand Slam. It will be his seventh decider at Melbourne Park, a feat no one else has achieved. The Swiss great began his year at the Hopman Cup and won all four of his singles matches, putting him on a 10-match unbeaten streak. He will be the third oldest man to contest the Melbourne Park final and has extended his record for most Grand Slam final appearances to 30. Rafael Nadal is next with 23.

The towering Croat, one of the tallest men on tour at 6 feet 6 inches, won his first major title at the 2014 US Open, defeating Kei Nishikori in the final. He is at a career-high in the rankings and by beating Kyle Edmund in the semis will rise to No 3 in the world. Nicknamed "Chila", he made the final at Wimbledon last year, losing to Roger Federer and won at the event in Istanbul to go with five semi-final appearances. He warmed up for the Australian Open by making the semi-finals in Pune. His previous best at Melbourne Park was the last four in 2010. </s> Roger Federer has captured his 20th Grand Slam singles title, beating Marin Cilic in a tense, back-and-forth Australian Open final 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.

 

It's the sixth Australian Open title in Federer's illustrious career, going along with his eight titles in Wimbledon, five at the U.S. Open and one at the French Open.

 

Cilic had two chances to break Federer's serve in the first game of the fifth set, but wasted them both with two unforced errors. The Croatian player then double-faulted twice in the second game to drop his own serve, giving Federer the decisive lead in the set.

 

The crowd at Rod Laver Arena loudly cheered him on as he neared his 20th Grand Slam win, chanting his name between games and applauding Cilic's errors.

 

At the age of 36 years, 173 days, Federer also becomes the second-oldest man to win a Grand Slam title in the Open era after Ken Rosewall, who won the 1972 Australian Open at 37.

 

Federer was overcome with emotion as he concluded his remarks to the Rod Laver Arena crowd following his victory over Marin Cilic. He had difficulty finishing his speech, tearing up as he thanked his team and then starting to cry as the crowd gave him a lengthy standing ovation. </s> Roger Federer has claimed a historic landmark in his career after he won his 100th title with a 6-4, 6-4 victory against Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Dubai Tennis Championships on Saturday.

 

The 37-year-old Swiss and 20-time Grand Slam champion is only the second man in the Open era to reach the three-figure mark in accolades after American Jimmy Connors, who won 109 titles.

Swiss Federer also avenged his shock defeat by Tsitsipas in the fourth round of the Australian Open in January.

"I'm delighted. It's great to win my eighth here in Dubai and in combination with my 100th singles title," Federer said.

"Tough conditions and tough opponents. To win in Marseille and then come here was difficult for Stefanos."

Federer, who had been stuck on 99 titles since triumphing at his hometown Basel tournament in October, broke Tsitsipas in the first game of the match and saved two break points at 5-4 to claim the first set in 36 minutes.

Tsitsipas, who will break into the top 10 for the first time on Monday, held firm up to 4-4 in the second set before the 37-year-old Federer switched gears to seal the decisive break and close out the victory.

"I don't know if Stefanos was born when I won my first title," Federer joked.

"It's a privilege (to play against potential champions) because I'll be watching them on TV. It was a treat to play Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. I'm sure Stefanos will have a wonderful career.

"Tennis is in good hands regardless if I'm there or not," Federer said.

Previously Tsitsipas won his only previous meeting with Federer, completing a four-set victory over the Swiss in a round of 16 match at this year's Australian Open.

On Friday in the semi-finals of the championships, Federer claimed two breaks of Croatian Borna Coric's serve in either set on the way to a 6-2, 6-2 win that took just over an hour. </s> Roger Federer became the first man to win Wimbledon eight times yesterday and extended his record to 19 Grand Slam titles with victory over Croatia’s Marin Cilic.

The Swiss third seed won 6-3 6-1 6-4 as seventh seed Cilic struggled with blisters on his left foot and broke down in tears during the second set.

Federer, 35, finished the contest and 41 minutes to claim his first Wimbledon title since 2012.

He becomes the oldest man in the Open Era to win at the All England Club.

“It is cruel sometimes,” Federer said of Cilic’s physical difficulties.

“But Marin fought well and is a hero, so congratulations on a wonderful tournament.

Federer surpasses Pete Sampras and William Renshaw, who won their seventh titles in 2000 and 1889 respectively, with only Marina Navratilova still ahead in terms of Wimbledon singles titles on nine.

He has won two of the three Grand Slam titles so far this year, having returned from a six-month break to win the Australian Open in January.

With 19 major titles he extends his lead over Rafael Nadal in the men’s game to four, and now stands joint-fourth on the all-time list with Helen Wills Moody, five behind Margaret Court on 24.

Among his long list of achievements, Federer became the first man since Bjorn Borg in 1976 to win the Wimbledon title without dropping a set.

The tournament favourite from the outset, he was rarely troubled over the course of seven matches, and Cilic was not in the condition to provide a serious test.

“I never give up in a match. I gave it my best – it’s all I can do,” Cilic said afterwards.

Federer was playing in his 11th Wimbledon final and Cilic his first, and the gap in experience showed from the early stages.

Cilic, 28, hit a forehand which bounced before the net on the opening point as the nerves appeared hard to shake off.

Federer offered up a couple of early double faults but there was a sense of inevitability about the first break, which came in game five after Cilic fell heavily chasing down a drop shot, and then sent a backhand into the net.

A beautiful cross-court forehand helped Federer towards set point in game nine and Cilic duly double-faulted, ending the set with a 49 per cent first-serve percentage that hardly troubled the Swiss.

After Federer made it 3-0 in the second set, a tearful Cilic sat in his chair as the doctor, tournament referee and supervisor attended to him. </s> MELBOURNE, Australia — Roger Federer will attempt to win his 20th Grand Slam singles title when he plays Marin Cilic in the Australian Open final on Sunday night.

Federer, the defending champion at Melbourne Park, is also vying for his sixth title here.

The Swiss star owns an 8-1 head-to-head record and defeated Cilic in straight sets in last year's Wimbledon final, although Cilic was affected by blisters in that match.

The mixed doubles final will open play Sunday at Rod Laver Arena. Rohan Bopanna and India and Hungary's Timea Babos will play Gabriela Dabrowski of Canada and Croatia's Mate Pavic. </s> By winning the Australian Open, Swiss tennis superstar Roger Federer made three records. He became the oldest player in the Open Era to win the Australian Open title for the sixth time, joining Novak Djokovic and Roy Emerson and Roger’s total Grand Slam tally went to 20, which is the highest of all times. The tennis star defeated Marin Cilic of Croatia 6-2, 6-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1 to win his third major title at 36.

Roger’s win-loss record in Melbourne stands at 94-13 and his Grand Slam mark stands at 332-52.

“I’m so happy, it’s unbelievable, it’s been a long day,” Federer said. “I’m happy it’s over now. The fairy tale continues for us, for me, it’s incredible,” he added as he clenched the Norman Brookes trophy.

Federer had entered the final without dropping a set but Cilic put a halt to that as he swung magnificently from the back of the court. This was evident in the second set and the fourth set. Cilic, in the fourth set, came from 1-3 down to break Federer’s twice back-to-back to go on and forced a conclusive fifth set. Federer left no stone unturned with the 6-1 win in the last set. However, the major decisive factor were the unforced errors with Cilic committing 64 and Roger with only 40.

“I kept thinking about the outcome quite often. It kept playing in my mind, ‘What if I lost?’At the end it is a relieving feeling. I’ll think about it for a long time," the 36-year-old winner said after the match. </s> MELBOURNE, Australia — Back where his career resurgence began with a drought-breaking triumph last year, Roger Federer cried as he lifted and kissed the Australian Open trophy for a sixth time and celebrated his 20th Grand Slam title.

Federer started Sunday’s final with an intensity that stunned sixth-seeded Marin Cilic, then held his nerve in a tense, momentum-shifting match before winning 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.

After going more than four years without winning a major title leading into last year’s Australian Open, Federer has now won three of the last five.

“I’m so happy. It’s unbelievable,” Federer said, taking deep breaths and choking back tears. “Of course, winning is an absolute dream come true – the fairytale continues for us, for me, after the great year I had last year, it’s incredible.”

The great Rod Laver, who lends his name to the center court at Melbourne Park, was in the crowd taking photos to mark the occasion of Federer becoming the first man to win 20 majors.

Federer started to tear up at the end of the trophy ceremony as he thanked his team in the stands. “I love you guys. Thank you,” he said. He then received a standing ovation as tears streamed down his face.

At the age of 36 years, 173 days, Federer became the second-oldest man to win a Grand Slam title in the Open era after Ken Rosewall, who won the 1972 Australian Open at 37.

“Big congratulations to Roger and his team – it’s amazing what you guys do,” Cilic said. “It was an amazing journey for me to come here to the final. I had a slight chance at the beginning of the fifth, but Roger played a great fifth set.”

It was clear early on that the crowd would be heavily pro-Federer. The arena was filled with the red and white colors of the Swiss flag, with Federer supporters wearing Swiss flags on their shirts, hats, signs and faces. Looking ahead to a possible Federer victory, one fan held a sign reading, “The Big Two-Oh. Go Roger!”

Federer was quick off the mark, getting service breaks in the first and third games and forcing Cilic to go to his equipment bag for a new racket after just 12 points. Federer only conceded two points on his serve in the opening set, which lasted just 24 minutes and was played under a closed roof because of the heat outside.

But Cilic rallied in the second, getting his big forehand working and, after missing a set point on Federer’s serve in the 10th game, leveled the match in the tiebreaker.

Federer won the third set in 29 minutes and was up a break in the fourth but momentum swung fully again, with Cilic going on a roll to level the match. Federer’s first-serve percentage plummeted from above 80 in the third set to 36 in the fourth as Cilic attacked.

Cilic had two chances to break Federer’s serve in the first game of the fifth set, but wasted them both with two unforced errors. He then double-faulted twice in the second game to drop his own serve, giving Federer the decisive lead in the set.

Federer had won eight of their previous nine matches, including last year’s Wimbledon final. His only loss was in the semifinals of the U.S. Open in 2014, where Cilic claimed his first major title.

The Swiss great wasn’t about to lose this one. Federer increased his level again, breaking Cilic again in the sixth game and then closing out at love – his celebrations delayed slightly by an unsuccessful challenge from Cilic on match point. It was a similar end to his five-set victory over Rafael Nadal here last year and, just like 12 months ago, the tears flowed.

The win wasn’t entirely without some controversy with organizers deciding early to close the roof for the final, just as they had for the afternoon mixed doubles final when Mate Pavic and Gabriela Dabrowski beat Rohan Bopanna and Timea Babos for the title.

Former champions and commentators questioned the rationale, saying there’d been hotter days earlier in the tournament when the heat policy was not enacted.

Tournament referee Wayne McEwen can introduce the policy when the temperature reaches 104 degrees and a measure called the wet-bulb globe temperature – which combines factors such as heat, humidity and breeze – reaches 90.5.

The temperature hit 100 an hour before the men’s final and the tournament organizers issued a statement saying that the WGBT reading was 91 at that time.

“With no dramatic reduction forecast, the referee exercised his discretion and called for the roof to be closed,” Tennis Australia said in a statement. “At no other time during the event this year has the WBGT reading reached the threshold.”
Swiss tennis player Roger Federer successfully defends his title in the five-sets men's singles final against Marin Čilić, winning his sixth title at the Australian Open and becoming the first man to win 20 titles in Grand Slam tournaments.