Tennis: Vintage Year for Players of a Certain Age Who Keep on Winning
Modern champions appear to have careers that are never-ending, but what are the reasons behind this golden age of tennis?
Serena Williams won her first grand slam title, the 1999 US Open, at the age of 17. Yesterday, not quite 16 years on, she has claimed her latest: a nervy, emotional 6-4, 6-4 victory at Wimbledon over Spain's Garbine Muguruza. Whether the 33-year-old American is the greatest player - male or female - ever to compete in the sport is a continuing debate. But certainly never in the modern era has a player dominated tennis for such a prolonged period.
Before Saturday's final, Williams said she didn't "need" to win another title. She has a point: she has now triumphed in 21 grand slams, one shy of Steffi Graf's record, including six Wimbledons. With her victory against Muguruza, Williams completed her second so-called "Serena Slam" - holding all four major titles at the same time - and more records are sure to tumble as she shows no signs of either slowing down or losing her insatiable desire for success.
"I never dreamed I'd be out here still and having so much fun," said Williams, hugging the Venus Rosewater Dish. "And winning Wimbledon again ... Oh my gosh." (Williams Inspired by Ageless Federer)
The 2015 edition of Wimbledon has been a vintage one for older players. In fact, a quick glance at the line-up for this finals weekend and you might think the organisers had mistakenly reprinted the programme from circa 2000. As well as Williams, the competitors include Roger Federer, who first announced his arrival on the tennis scene by beating Pete Sampras on Centre Court back in 2001, and Martina Hingis, the women's singles champion from 1997. The revival of Hingis, the 34-year-old Swiss player, is a particularly heartening one.
She retired from tennis, in 2002 aged 22, ostensibly because of ankle injuries but in part because her crafty, subtle game that had won five majors was being made to look anachronistic by Williams and others. There was an unconvincing comeback in the mid-2000s, before she returned as a doubles specialist in 2013. At Wimbledon 2015, Hingis has reached the finals of both the women's and mixed doubles events.
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The longevity of 33-year-old Federer, meanwhile, is making everyone scrabble around for new superlatives. His emphatic victory over Andy Murray on Friday was considered by many - including Murray, and Federer didn't deny it - as one of the finest performances of the seven-times champion at Wimbledon. Later on today, Federer faces Novak Djokovic and, should he win, he will become the oldest men's winner of the Open era, the period post-1968 when professionals entered the sport.
What explains the never-ending careers of the modern tennis champions? Improved nutrition and injury prevention, for both sexes, is clearly a factor. The rise of the baseline power game is also important, with younger players taking longer to develop the muscles and fitness to succeed. Money, too, cannot be ignored. Prize funds have increased exponentially, giving players an additional motivation to keep competing and extra means - private jets, trainers - to make that possible.
Whatever the reasons, it is a golden age for tennis's golden girls and boys - one unlikely to end imminently. "Right now we're very lucky to have Roger and Serena Williams playing at the same time," said Murray after his semi-final defeat to Federer. "To be doing what they've done for so long a period - Serena since she was 17; Roger since he was 20, 21 - is incredible. They are two of the best athletes across any sports."
Federer just shrugs off the compliments about his continued excellence. "Tennis is bigger than anybody," he said on Friday, before breaking into a lop-sided grin. "It's a great game to play, I tell you."