What a Wimbledon it was. From the early-round losses of Venus Williams and Rafael Nadal to the controversial comments from Gilles Simon. We had untimely rain, roof dilemmas and ordinance restrictions. And, of course, there was that golden set. What else could we have wanted?

After a captivating couple of weeks, our writers unveil their Wimbledon awards.

Most Valuable Player

Peter Bodo: Andy Murray whipped the entire U.K. into a frenzy and stimulated a lot of interest in other places simply by virtue of his situation, vying to become the first British man to win Wimbledon since Fred Perry last did it in 1936. That he was asked to accomplish this against Roger Federer, the holder of 16 Grand Slam titles (including six at Wimbledon) -- a daunting assignment. Although Murray lost his fourth Grand Slam final, he gave his countrymen plenty to appreciate and justifiably fired hopes in a high-quality four-set final. Kudos to Murray for being so consistent at a tournament where he's always under a tremendous amount of pressure. It will truly be a bummer if and when he loses in the first week because the tournament would not be the same without this storyline.

Howard Bryant: Roger Federer. He said he wasn't done, and he meant it. He said he thought he could still be the No. 1 player in the world when few others did. Roger Federer wasn't just terrific in winning his 17th major and seventh Wimbledon, he put on a clinic against Andy Murray. His performance in the third and fourth sets was some of the best tennis he's ever played.

Greg Garber: Serena Williams. After a terrible year off the court she was winless in her past seven Grand Slam events, but here at Wimbledon she regained her championship form. The greatest serve in the history of the women's game was in the rarest form. Serena hit 102 aces (against only 10 double faults) -- the most important ones coming in a 49-second span of the third set of the final against Agnieszka Radwanska. Serena went 4-for-4 in aces and never lost another game. She seems healthy and, more importantly, happy. Watch out, WTA opponents.

Kamakshi Tandon: The two 30-year-old resurgent champs came out on top, but this unfolded very much as Andy Murray's tournament. He had the trickiest draw of the top seeds through to the semifinals, then all the pressure of not facing Rafael Nadal. But he came through it all, playing well from the very first round. He then stole the show with his teary postmatch speech, despite losing the final.

Ravi Ubha: The old guy, Roger Federer, fought, fought and fought some more to win major No. 17. What I'll remember most isn't Federer beating Andy Murray in the final, but Federer staying calm and focused after dropping the opening two sets to Julien Benneteau in the third round. No sign of panic, even with a back that wasn't 100 percent. Head down, he went to work like he has so many times in the past. If that doesn't give you an indication of his motivation -- at the age of 30 -- nothing will.

Matt Wilansky: Tough pickings between two 30-year-olds, who, by the way, won a Slam at the same event for the sixth time. But the edge in this geriatric bowl has to go to Serena Williams over Roger Federer. Not only for overcoming a couple of really bad performances, but for winning the doubles championship just hours after she hoisted the singles trophy. Serena was able to maintain her focus after a cathartic match against Agnieszka Radwanksa in the final. Serena has had her share of shortcomings, for sure. Most notably, she was kicked out of the French Open in the first round and looked like a shadow of her former self. But a few weeks later, she's sparked the same old debate all over again: Is Serena truly the best player in the game?

Least Valuable Player

Bodo: Victoria Azarenka, Madame Whoooo, was the invisible woman at this tournament. This despite reaching the semifinals, ending up ranked No. 1 and losing to Serena Williams. Azarenka has taken some giant steps backward since she earned the No. 1 ranking with that great start Down Under early this year. Maria Sharapova stole Azarenka's thunder in Paris, and by the time Vika got to Wimbledon, it seemed that nobody cared how she did, or what she had to say for herself. She was not touted going in or mourned going out. Azarenka can be very dismissive, and her sarcasm wears thin. And the fact so many people find her shrieking off-putting didn't help her cause.

Bryant: Rafael Nadal. After winning his seventh French Open and ridding himself of the specter of Novak Djokovic, it appeared that Nadal was ready to make another title run. Then Lukas Rosol sent Nadal into a tailspin. It is now unclear which Nadal will enter the Olympics and the U.S. Open. Suddenly, Nadal is now third in the world, and again it is uncertain how much wear and tear is on Nadal's body and psyche.

Garber: A tie between Petra Kvitova and Caroline Wozniacki. Kvitova, the defending champion, struggled against Francesca Schiavone in the quarters and got dusted by Serena Williams in the semifinals 6-3, 7-5. As she proved a year ago, Kvitova has the big game for grass but just doesn't take enough off her shots when things get tight. Wozniacki, the former world No. 1, crashed out in the very first round when Tamira Paszek, an eventual quarterfinalist, pounded her in three sets. Neither result was exactly a shock.

Tandon: If this is code for worst showing, it goes to Samantha Stosur. She should be able to adapt her game to this surface but has never made it further than the third round at Wimbledon. She has lost here in the first round six times. This year, she lost in the second round to Arantxa Rus by the suitably bizarre score of 6-2, 0-6, 6-4.

Ubha: When the year began, I'll admit that I thought Petra Kvitova could win two of the first three majors. She started off well in Australia and, of course, was the defending champion at Wimbledon. However, Kvitova -- and I'm aware she was ill and injured in the winter and spring -- hasn't done enough. It's time to hone her game and not go for too much, too soon in rallies. Yes, Serena Williams won Wimbledon, but I expected Kvitova to push her more in the quarterfinals. Hey, Jie Zheng, Yaroslava Shvedova and Agnieszka Radwanska all took Serena to three.

Wilansky: Imagine stringing together the perfect set: No double faults. Not one mental lapse, a pratfall on the slick grass or one unforced error. Imagine an opponent who couldn't muster one lousy ace, one go-for-broke winner or one lucky drop shot. Yaroslava Shvedova won the first set of her third-round match at Wimbledon 6-0 and, in the process, did not lose a single point. But it was who she beat in this golden set that was just as mind-numbing. Sara Errani, the 10th seed and this year's French Open runner-up, suffered an unthinkable loss. This is only the second known time in the Open...