Wimbledon 2012: Andy Murray says Federer 'one of greatest'

A heartbroken Andy Murray said there was no shame in losing to Roger Federer in the Wimbledon final.

Murray, the first British men's singles finalist since 1938, lost 4-6 7-5 6-3 6-4 as Federer won his seventh title at Wimbledon and 17th Grand Slam crown.

"It's hard, it's tough to take, but you need to show strength of character to come back from it," said Murray.

"We're talking about one of the greatest athletes of all time. You've got to put it in context a little bit."

Murray went into his fourth Grand Slam final under a huge weight of public expectation as British tennis fans relished the prospect of a first homegrown champion since Fred Perry in 1936.

Even though 25-year-old Murray was considered the underdog, many observers rated his chances given the 30-year-old Federer's slide down the rankings and lack of a Grand Slam title since the 2010 Australian Open.

World number four Murray broke the Swiss in the very first game and went on to take the first set, but from then on Federer eased his way to victory to equal Pete Sampras's Open-era record for Wimbledon titles.

The win also took him back to the top of the world rankings above Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

"Was it my best chance? I don't know," said Murray. "I lost to a guy that's now won this tournament seven times and is number one in the world.

"He's still playing amazing tennis. A lot of people have been asking me, 'Has he started slipping? Is he not playing as well">