Federer can only beat himself: Hingis

The only thing that can stop Roger Federer now is he himself, former tennis champion Martina Hingis said on Monday a day after her Swiss countryman captured the Wimbledon title for the second year in a row.

- Images from the final day at Wimbledon

"At the moment, only he can beat himself -- although he has become very strong mentally," Hingis was quoted as saying in the Swiss daily Blick newspaper.

"Before the Wimbledon final I thought: 'If anyone can beat Roger then it's Andy Roddick.' But that was not the case."

The level-headed 22-year-old came back from a set down to beat world number two Roddick in four sets.

Swiss newspapers on Monday carried page-sized pictures of Federer on the floor after winning the final and congratulated him for sticking to his motto of: "It is nice to be important but it is more important to be nice."

Hingis, herself a former Wimbledon, Australian and U.S. Open champion, said Federer now had to make sure he stayed focused on his training and is prepared to "say no".

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"The whole tennis world is after you -- fans, media, sponsors and tournaments. That takes up a lot of time," she said.

But Hingis, who was forced to quit tennis last year aged just 22 due to a series of ankle injuries, sounded confident that Federer would master that challenge.

"Roger is the most talented and the most complete player on the tour. One gets the feeling that he can always move up one gear when he needs to," Hingis added.