At age 30, Roger Federer ended a two-year major drought and won Wimbledon for the seventh time on Sunday. Many doubted if the Swiss great could ever win on Centre Court again, but one man did not: Tiger Woods.
Federer credited the 14-time major winner with providing encouragement all the way to his 17th major title.
"(Woods) was very pumped up these last couple days for me," Federer said, according toESPN. "He was very supportive. It's nice, when other greats like this do believe in me. They push me further, even in the rain delay, when they cheer you on. I wish him the best, as well."
The parallels to Woods' career is evident. Woods has now gone four years without adding to his major tally, with many questioning if he can do it again. Federer said he had to make an adjustment to fend off the likes of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
"To win 90 percent of my matches throughout the year, it's impossible every single year," he said. "So you're always going to go through ups and downs."
A parent of two twin girls, Federer admitted struggling to balance his quest to again become No. 1 in the world, while being a parent.
"I think (parenthood has) helped my game more than anything because I think I'm playing some of the best tennis of my life right now and [for] a long time now," he said. "But to be able to juggle everything has been a challenge. I think you learn from mistakes."
