Back in May*, I asked if eight greater words than “Federer stuns clay king Nadal in Madrid final” had been written all year. That’s a distant memory now, with the French Open in the rearview mirror, and this evening I saw a ten-word proclamation that must certainly qualify as the best headline I’ve read all year (other than “Palin Resigns”): “Roger Federer confirms he is greatest ever in wonderful finale.” To my father, who has been antagonizing me since Federer’s bout with mono last year by saying at the start of every tournament that his best playing days are behind him: you can shut up now.

*I know, I know, what happened to June? Your guess is as good as mine.