Roger Federer sought consolation in a golden summer rather than dwelling on defeat after his upset loss to Juan Martin del Potro in the US Open final.
The towering Argentine became the only player other than Rafael Nadal to beat the world number one in a grand slam final, ending Federer's bid to become the first man in the modern era to win six successive New York titles.
Federer was visibly upset 14 months ago when Nadal beat him in near-darkness in a five-set thriller at Wimbledon. He was distraught after another epic loss to the Spaniard at the Australian Open in February.
In New York, though, Federer calmly accepted Sunday's 3-6, 7-6, 4-6,7-6, 6-2 loss. "Five was great, four was great, too. Six would have been a dream, too, can't have them all," the Swiss told reporters with a smile.
"I'm not too disappointed just because I thought I played another wonderful tournament. I had chances today to win but couldn't take them. It was unfortunate," he added.
A year ago, Federer might have been less sanguine but his subsequent form has softened the blow.
He completed his grand slam collection by winning the French Open in Paris before overhauling Pete Sampras's previous record of 14 men's grand slam titles with victory at Wimbledon.
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"This one is easy to get over just because I've had the most amazing summer and a great run," Federer said. "I tried everything. Didn't work. I missed chances. He played well and in the end it was a tough fifth set. It's acceptable. Life goes on. No problem."
All the statistics were on Federer's side before Sunday's final.
He owned a record 15 grand slam titles and possessed a 40-match winning streak at Flushing Meadows. He had won 33 of his previous 34 grand slam matches and reached the final at 17 of the past 18 majors.
Del Potro, meanwhile, was in his first grand slam final and, more importantly, had come off second best in all six of his previous duels with Federer.
The 20-year-old, however, did not care about numbers or the past.
He came into the match after subjecting Nadal to his most lopsided loss in a grand slam, surrendering just six games in a semi-final destruction.
Federer, too, ended up discovering just how lethal that bullet forehand can be when he saw 37 winners whizz past his outstretched racket during the four-hour marathon.
At the end of the contest, it was Federer's numbers that made grim reading. Eleven double faults and 62 unforced errors is not the kind of statistics a world number would be proud of.
But Federer remained confident that Monday's defeat was just a blip in his season rather than a sign of things to come.
"I'm playing great tennis right now. I'm confident I'm hitting a good ball. This doesn't take away anything from how much I've achieved this year, so I've had a wonderful season in terms of grand slams," he said.
"Next to that, I also got back to number one in the world. I hope I can defend that until the end of the year."
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