Novak Djokovic recovered from throwing away the fourth set to deny Roger Federer a record eighth Wimbledon title with a 6-7(7) 6-4 7-6(4) 5-7 6-4 victory in an enthralling final.

It had looked as though Federer would clinch his 18th Grand Slam crown, but Djokovic held his nerve in the decider to claim his second Wimbledon title.The top seed surrendered a mini-break in the opening set tie-break as Federer roared back to claim it 9-7.

But Djokovic responded to reel off the next two sets before establishing an early break in the fourth.Former world number one Federer hit back immediately, only to throw away his serve moments later to leave Djokovic two games from victory at 4-2.

However, there was more drama as Federer broke back with Djokovic serving for the championships and then survived match point on his own serve to tie the set at 5-5.The momentum was with the Swiss star and he completed a remarkable turnaround when he broke serve again before serving it out to force a decider to the delight of the Centre Court crowd.

But, just as the contest seemed destined to drag on into the night, Djokovic broke Federer in the 10th game in the fifth set to seal a hard-fought victory.Djokovic fell to the floor and, rather bizarrely, chose to eat a blade of the Wimbledon grass to celebrate.