He swept the baseline returning balls with an upward flourish of the forehand and fired his big, stinging groundstrokes at Federer's backhand which once again ultimately broke down under the pressure and Nadal was crowned king after four hours 23 minutes of drama.

Nadal fell on his back and spread his arms wide, a sixth grand slam title in the bag. As Federer sadly packed his rackets away in his bag, Nadal trotted to his camp courtside, raising his arms aloft, with a smile from ear-to-ear.

"God, it's killing me," summed up a sobbing Federer during the presentation ceremony.

Federer must now wait for another tilt at Pete Sampras's record of 14 grand slams. Moreover his claim to be the best tennis player of all time will be increasingly challenged by the Spaniard.

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