Beijing: Switzerland's Roger Federer could not stop hugging partner Stanislas Wawrinka after they beat Swedes Simon Aspelin and Thomas Johansson 6-3 6-4 6-7 6-3 to win the Olympic men's doubles final on Saturday.
The best player in the world for the past five years produced flashes of brilliance throughout the contest but he also owed much to his lesser known opponent who played a full part in the Centre Court finale.
"The thing is, I can't just hug a stranger when I win singles," a beaming Federer told reporters after finally winning the Olympic medal he craved after failing to deliver at his previous two appearances.
"In singles you're all alone on the court. You win, you sit down. This is quite a surreal moment. It's a joy sharing this victory with somebody else who I like very much, who we had a great two weeks with. It's quite different to anything I've ever gone through."
Federer, who carried the Swiss flag at the opening ceremony, was clearly fired up throughout the contest. The 27-year-old 12-times Grand Slam champion is usually cool and calm on court but on Saturday he was clenching his fists at crucial points and roaring praise at Wawrinka.
The Swiss, who will cede his number one ranking to Spain's Rafael Nadal on Monday, has endured a barren year and was knocked out of the Olympic singles by James Blake in the quarter-finals.
He was clearly in no mood to let his chance slip this time. Fittingly it was he who had the job of serving for gold at 5-3 in the fourth set. He duly obliged before embarking on a lap of honour with the Swiss flag. "I told myself let me try for a big second serve because I know I have it in my game, otherwise I'll have Stanley at the net finishing it off himself," Federer joked.
They had seemed set for a comfortable victory when they opened a two-set lead, but Johansson, a former Australian Open champion, inspired a Swedish fightback. Wawrinka then produced some inspired play to earn an early break in the fourth set and they remained rock solid to the end.
The bronze medal went to American brothers Bob and Mike Bryan who beat French duo Arnaud Clement and Michael Llodra 3-6 6-3 6-4.
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