LONDON (AP) – Among Roger Federer’s resolutions for the new year: Winning a first French Open title and a fifth-straight Wimbledon crown.

“(Winning the) French Open will definitely be a dream come true but on top of the list there is always Wimbledon and staying No. 1,” Federer said. “These are the ones that changed my life and made me the player and person I am today.”

Federer reached his first final at Roland Garros in May, and lost to No. 2 Rafael Nadal in four sets. Since the beginning of 2004, Nadal is the only player to have beaten Federer multiple times.

“You need the competition – some get more lucky, some get more unlucky,” Federer told the BBC. “But we have a great set of players at the moment like Nadal, (Andy) Roddick, (Lleyton) Hewitt, (Marat) Safin, (David) Nalbandian and new ones coming like (Ivan) Ljubicic and (Nikolay) Davydenko.”

The Swiss star reached 16 finals in the 17 events he entered in 2006 – including a victory at the U.S. Open – and became the first player to earn more than $8 million in a season.

The 25-year-old enters 2007 knowing he can eclipse Jimmy Connors’ record 160 weeks at No. 1 with his third Australian Open title in January.

“I have a big motivation because when I come back to Australia it’s one of my favorite tournaments and the weather is perfect for me,” Federer said. “It’s one of my special goals for 2007 to play well in Australia.”


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.