ALREADY a holder of a record number of both Wimbledon and Grand Slam singles titles, Roger Federer quietly racked up another milestone in progressing to the second round.

With seven replica trophies sitting in a trophy cabinet back home in Switzerland, Federer could justifiably already lay claim to being the greatest ever male singles player at Wimbledon.

But now, with a win over Alexandr Dolgopolov after the Ukrainian retired when trailing 6-3 3-0 to the Swiss master, Federer can now also boast the most number of men’s singles match victories on the grass courts of SW19.

Coming into the 2017 Championships he shared the mark with Jimmy Connors - level as they were on 84 - but the uneventful win over a traditionally tricky opponent in Dolgopolov saw Federer add another string to his already highly-strung bow.

However, such was the manner of the victory, coming just an hour after Martin Klizan had retired in a similar predicament against Novak Djokovic on Centre Court, the post-match questioning focussed more on the issue of player retirements than Federer’s landmark victory.

“When I went out, I felt like there was a bit of a letdown from the crowd,” said the 35-year-old. “They couldn't believe that it happened again, exactly the same situation - he called the trainer after the set, then pulled out at three to love, the same thing.

“When I walked off the chairman said, 'you guys should go and play for another set and a half.' I said let me go try to find Novak [Djokovic]. I found him in the locker room and told him, maybe we should go out and play another set.

"I feel for the crowd. They're there to watch good, proper tennis.

“At least they saw the two of us who gave it all they had. They saw other players that tried at least. They also put in another match at Centre Court. It's unfortunate that it happened today like this.”

Federer goes on to play Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic in the second round, with a potential semi-final against his next opponent’s compatriot Djokovic looming on the horizon should they both get that far.

Wednesday is sure to bring a more intense session on the practice courts for Federer as he looks for the workout he lacked against Dolgopolov on Tuesday.

But with the veteran having taken the remainder of last season off after losing to Milos Raonic in a five-set semi-final, only to come back and win the Australian Open in his first month back on the Tour in January, he is used to playing while short of matches.

His success did not end in Melbourne, either, with back-to-back tournament wins following in Indian Wells and Miami in the spring, before taking another break to avoid the rigours of the clay court season.

And he has enjoyed perfect preparation for a tilt at a record eighth Wimbledon title having won just his second tournament back on the grass with an historic ninth title at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany just a fortnight ago.

"I'm a tennis player, I'm a match player,” he added. “Sometimes you have to reset to come back there.

“The moment I leave this room, I will get in the car to go home and I'm in a different place. I'm a family man, I'm a husband, I'm a dad. I'm a friend.

“Then I watch tennis on the TV as a fan. I think I've always done that really well. But I think the break really gave me that distance and that time to really just reset. It felt great."

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