Customer Reviews

Wimbledon 2007 Final: Federer vs. Nadal

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an absolute classic tennis match - one of the best I've ever seen. The fifth set will surely go down in tennis history.

The DVD is incorrectly listed on Amazon as 180 minutes and 1 disc. It is in fact 260 minutes (the full length) and comes on 2 discs. The DVD also features 16:9 anamorphic widescreen video (not full screen format). The contents of the DVD are as follows:

Disc 1 (115 minutes)
1. Interviews and Warmups
2. First Set
3. Second Set

Disc 2 (154 minutes)
1. Third Set
2. Fourth Set
3. Fifth Set
4. Trophy Presentations
5. Borg Congraulates Federer

The commentary appears to be the UK BBC commentary which includes some comments from Jimmy Connors (I think). If they could have included the John McEnroe commentary that was provided in the US CBS broadcast as an audio option, this disc would have been absolutely perfect!

For 25 years the inane babbling of Dick Enberg, perpetually oscillating between the obvious and the boring, has been like a toothache in every Grand Slam Men's final I've watched.

This BBC coverage, by contrast, is an object lesson in how to do it right: intelligent, perceptive and minimalist. The commentators include John Lloyd (British Davis Cup Captain and two-time Mixed Doubles Champion) and Jimmy Connors (two-time Singles champion -- addressing his colleague as "Lloydie"). Both therefore have a deep knowledge of their field, and both are excellent. Their remarks are all interesting and address such matters as why someone missed a particular shot, or who has the momentum; there are no repetitions of the umpire (Carlos Ramos)'s calling of the score, no statistics about how many backhand volleys Nadal has missed in this set.

And of course having no commercials makes such a difference.

The match itself has much to expostulate about. Simply put, this is one of the greatest tennis matches I have seen in fifty years. True, the 2008 final was closer, but Federer was spraying the court for the first two sets; whereas the tennis here is brilliant on both sides throughout.

I hadn't realised that the moment the last ball has bounced twice, someone instantly rushes to the Players' Entrance with a gold-leaf decal and adds the champion's name to the roster by the door, so that he sees it there when he re-enters the building after the award ceremony -- a nice touch.

The two discs include the entire match, the award ceremony, interviews with both finalists, and footage of Björn Borg congratulating Roger afterwards.

The picture and sound are both crystal clear.

This is a wonderful remembrance of Roger Federer winning the Wimbledon tennis tournament in 2007. It is exciting even though I knew the ending. Ihave watched it several times and will watch it over and over. Thanks for offering it Amazon!!!

Fantastic match, full of emotion. It was impossible stop watching it before its final. Sorry for my english.

The only reason I didn't give this 5 stars is because the DVD does not offer much more than just the match as it was broadcast. I would like to have seen an option for more angles of play or some separate bit on analysis of each players strategy, or... something. It was such a great match I had to buy it, but I don't like seeing the Lawn and Tennis club sitting on their laurels just because they're showing the Wimbledon final.

The video captured the essence of the match and was entertaining from the first point. The British commentaries fell flat, though, compared to their American counterparts.

Great match, of course. I don't have the item yet but the product specs say it's a 3 hour DVD and the match lasted 3 hrs 45 minutes. So a great pity it's not provided in real time (as in the Federer v Sampras Wimbledon DVD). Would have made a big difference in terms of reliving the dramatic buildup and tension.