# 2019 Wimbledon Championships
The 2019 [Wimbledon Championships](https://www.edgepedia.org/wimbledon-championships) were the 133rd staging of the Wimbledon tennis tournament, a Grand Slam grass-court event held at the All England Lawn Tennis Club in London from 1 to 14 July 2019.[1](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1448670/wimbledon-enhancements-announced-for-2019-event-and-beyond) • [2](https://www.wtatennis.com/tournaments/904/wimbledon/2019) The edition is remembered for two singles finals: [Novak Djokovic](https://www.edgepedia.org/novak-djokovic) saved two match points to beat [Roger Federer](https://www.edgepedia.org/roger-federer) in the first Grand Slam men's singles final ever decided by a final-set tie-break, and Simona Halep beat Serena Williams in 56 minutes to win her first Wimbledon title.[3](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/582689-first-grand-slam-mens-singles-final-to-feature-a-final-set-tie-break) • [4](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/in-56-minutes-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-wimbledon)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Dates and edition | 1–14 July 2019; 133rd staging of the Championships[1](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1448670/wimbledon-enhancements-announced-for-2019-event-and-beyond) |
| Ladies' singles champion | Simona Halep (7th seed), who beat Serena Williams (11th seed) 6-2, 6-2 in 56 minutes[4](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/in-56-minutes-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-wimbledon) • [5](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1446826/i-wanted-this-badly-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-for-wimbledon-2019-title) |
| Rule change | Final-set tie-breaks at 12 games all were introduced at the 2019 Championships, replacing the rule that the final set must be won by two clear games[3](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/582689-first-grand-slam-mens-singles-final-to-feature-a-final-set-tie-break) |
| Longest final | The men's final took almost five hours, making it the longest Wimbledon final in history[6](https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/353817840/The_Grand_Tiebreak_in_Tennis.pdf) |
| Venue change | A new fixed and retractable roof on No. 1 Court was completed by 2019 and tested at a public event on 19 May 2019[7](https://content.tfl.gov.uk/wimbledon-championships-notice-4-19.pdf) |
## The new final-set tie-break
Before 2019, a Wimbledon final set had to be won by two clear games, which had produced ever-lengthening matches, including a 50-game fifth set on [Centre Court](https://www.edgepedia.org/centre-court) in 2018.[8](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/men-s-match-of-the-decade-no-1-djokovic-d-federer-2019-wimbledon) In late 2018 the All England Club announced that from 2019, when the final set of any match reached 12 games all, a standard seven-point tie-break would be played, with the rule applying to all events at The Championships and processed with respect for the Rules of Tennis governed by the [International Tennis Federation](https://www.edgepedia.org/international-tennis-federation).[9](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1438560/wimbledon-announces-final-set-tiebreak-from-2019) Wheelchair and quad wheelchair events kept their existing best-of-three tie-break set format.[9](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1438560/wimbledon-announces-final-set-tiebreak-from-2019)
The rule took effect at the very first opportunity in the men's final. On 14 July 2019, Djokovic and Federer reached 12-12 in the fifth set, and the first-ever fifth-set tie-break in a Grand Slam men's singles final was contested; Djokovic won it 7-3 to close out the match at 13-12 in the deciding set.[3](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/582689-first-grand-slam-mens-singles-final-to-feature-a-final-set-tie-break)
## Men's singles final: Djokovic d. Federer
Djokovic, the top seed and defending champion, faced second-seeded Federer in a final that ran 7-6, 1-6, 7-6, 4-6, 12-12 before the tie-break.[3](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/582689-first-grand-slam-mens-singles-final-to-feature-a-final-set-tie-break) Federer held two match points on his own serve in the fifth set; Djokovic fought both off and won the championship, becoming the first player since 1948 to come from a match point down to win the Wimbledon final.[10](https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/05/novac-djokovic-unlikeable-tennis-player/678470/) Federer had reached the final by beating [Rafael Nadal](https://www.edgepedia.org/rafael-nadal) in an intense semifinal.[11](https://time.com/5619233/watch-wimbledon-2019-free/) The match is widely ranked among the greatest tennis matches ever played; Tennis.com named it the men's match of the decade.[12](https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.07309) • [8](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/men-s-match-of-the-decade-no-1-djokovic-d-federer-2019-wimbledon)
## Ladies' singles final: Halep d. Williams
On 13 July 2019, the seventh-seeded Simona Halep of Romania beat the 11th-seeded [Serena Williams](https://www.edgepedia.org/serena-williams) 6-2, 6-2 on Centre Court in a final that lasted 56 minutes.[4](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/in-56-minutes-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-wimbledon) • [5](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1446826/i-wanted-this-badly-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-for-wimbledon-2019-title) It was Halep's first Wimbledon title and her second Grand Slam trophy, after the 2018 [French Open](https://www.edgepedia.org/french-open), and she became the first Romanian woman to win Wimbledon.[4](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/in-56-minutes-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-wimbledon) • [13](https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jul/13/simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-first-wimbledon-title) Halep, playing her first final at Wimbledon, described the win as something she had wanted badly; after building an early lead she won the final four games of the match.[5](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1446826/i-wanted-this-badly-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-for-wimbledon-2019-title)
For Williams, the loss denied a 24th Grand Slam singles title that would have equaled [Margaret Court](https://www.edgepedia.org/margaret-court)'s all-time record, a mark that has stood since 1973.[13](https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jul/13/simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-first-wimbledon-title) • [14](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/07/13/serena-williams-simona-halep-wimbledon-final/) It was her third major final since returning from maternity leave, and all three ended in defeat.[15](https://www.usta.com/en/home/pro/pro-media---news/serena-williams-drops-wimbledon-final-to--perfect--simona-halep.html)
## Early-round storylines
The first days of the tournament produced notable upsets. Cori "Coco" Gauff beat her idol [Venus Williams](https://www.edgepedia.org/venus-williams), and [Naomi Osaka](https://www.edgepedia.org/naomi-osaka), the world No. 2, lost in straight sets to [Yulia Putintseva](https://www.edgepedia.org/yulia-putintseva) in the first round.[11](https://time.com/5619233/watch-wimbledon-2019-free/) On day eight, Andy Murray and Serena Williams played together in mixed doubles, a pairing that drew wide attention during the fortnight.[16](https://www.the-independent.com/sport/wimbledon-cricket-world-cup-2019-lords-centre-court-roger-federer-novak-djokovic-a9005256.html)
## Grounds and operational changes
The 2019 Championships were the first played with the completed redevelopment of No. 1 Court, which included a new fixed and retractable roof as part of the Wimbledon Master Plan scheduled for completion by 2019; a test event for the new roof was held on Sunday 19 May 2019.[7](https://content.tfl.gov.uk/wimbledon-championships-notice-4-19.pdf) • [17](https://www.wimbledon.com/pdf/TheWimbledon_Compendium_2019.pdf) The completion of the second roof also prompted a revision of the heat rule, so that a single heat rule was applied to all events at the tournament rather than separate rules for different courts.[1](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1448670/wimbledon-enhancements-announced-for-2019-event-and-beyond) Centre Court itself had been modernized in earlier phases, with all court seating replaced by 12,345 wider, cushioned seats and new LED sports lighting in the roof unveiled for 2019.[18](https://www.wimbledon.com/pdf/Ticket_Holders_Guide_2019.pdf)
## References
1. [Wimbledon enhancements announced for 2019 event and beyond, WTA Tennis](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1448670/wimbledon-enhancements-announced-for-2019-event-and-beyond)
2. [The Championships 2019 Overview, WTA Official](https://www.wtatennis.com/tournaments/904/wimbledon/2019)
3. [First Grand Slam men's singles final to feature a final-set tie-break, Guinness World Records](https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/582689-first-grand-slam-mens-singles-final-to-feature-a-final-set-tie-break)
4. [In 56 minutes, Simona Halep stuns Serena Williams to win Wimbledon, Tennis.com](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/in-56-minutes-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-wimbledon)
5. ['I wanted this badly' - Simona Halep stuns Serena Williams for Wimbledon 2019 title, WTA Tennis](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1446826/i-wanted-this-badly-simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-for-wimbledon-2019-title)
6. [The Grand Tiebreak in Tennis, King's College London](https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/ws/portalfiles/portal/353817840/The_Grand_Tiebreak_in_Tennis.pdf)
7. [Wimbledon Tennis Championships 2019, Notice 04/19, Transport for London](https://content.tfl.gov.uk/wimbledon-championships-notice-4-19.pdf)
8. [Men's Match of the Decade No. 1: Djokovic d. Federer, 2019 Wimbledon, Tennis.com](https://www.tennis.com/news/articles/men-s-match-of-the-decade-no-1-djokovic-d-federer-2019-wimbledon)
9. [Wimbledon announces final set tiebreak from 2019, WTA Tennis](https://www.wtatennis.com/news/1438560/wimbledon-announces-final-set-tiebreak-from-2019)
10. [The Unbearable Greatness of Djokovic, The Atlantic](https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2024/05/novac-djokovic-unlikeable-tennis-player/678470/)
11. [Here's How to Watch Every Wimbledon 2019 Match for Free, Time](https://time.com/5619233/watch-wimbledon-2019-free/)
12. [Making Tennis Fairer: The Grand Tiebreaker, arXiv](https://arxiv.org/abs/2501.07309)
13. [Simona Halep stuns Serena Williams to win first Wimbledon title, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jul/13/simona-halep-stuns-serena-williams-to-win-first-wimbledon-title)
14. [Playing 'the best match of my life,' Simona Halep dominates Serena Williams for Wimbledon title, The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2019/07/13/serena-williams-simona-halep-wimbledon-final/)
15. [Serena stopped by Halep in Wimbledon final, USTA](https://www.usta.com/en/home/pro/pro-media---news/serena-williams-drops-wimbledon-final-to--perfect--simona-halep.html)
16. [From Wimbledon to the Cricket World Cup, The Independent](https://www.the-independent.com/sport/wimbledon-cricket-world-cup-2019-lords-centre-court-roger-federer-novak-djokovic-a9005256.html)
17. [The Wimbledon Compendium 2019, AELTC](https://www.wimbledon.com/pdf/TheWimbledon_Compendium_2019.pdf)
18. [What's On in 2019, Ticket Holders' Guide, AELTC](https://www.wimbledon.com/pdf/Ticket_Holders_Guide_2019.pdf)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Racket and precision ball sports › Tennis › Tennis tournaments and circuits › Grand Slam tournaments › Wimbledon*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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