Roger Federer came into 2017 with many doubters.

The general feeling was that his career was certainly in its twilight and was slowly winding down to a comfortable, albeit uneventful, end.

The 35-year-old had not won a Grand Slam in five years, and it looked as though the younger generation had finally found a way to overcome his mastery.

How wrong we all were.

Federer got off to a blistering start this year, winning his 18th Slam at the Australian Open before choosing to take a break to focus on and prepare for the grass court season.

That proved to be a stroke of genius, as Federer cruised to a record eighth Wimbledon title with terrifying ease, seeing fit to not drop a single set on his way to Centre Court glory.

It is safe to say that 2017 has been one of the best years of Federer's long and illustrious career. His remarkable resurgence has been a joy for all to watch and his endlessly passionate approach to the game has left the world in awe of his ability and agelessness.  

There will always be debates as to whether or not the Swiss maestro can be called the greatest player of all time, but former British number one Tim Henman believes that Federer has done enough to rightfully claim that title.

"In my opinion, he is [the best], but I think it's difficult to compare generations," said Henman.

He did admit that it is difficult to compare players from different eras, but felt all the same that Federer is still the best of the lot.

"You think of Rod Laver who won all four Majors in a calendar year - he did that twice. And for seven years of his professional career he didn't play Grand Slams because he turned professional. So how many Majors would he have won?

"And then you reflect, the four Grand Slams were on grass when he played. So if you had (Pete) Sampras playing three of the four Grand Slams on grass, I'm sure he would've won a lot more.

"But, right now, it does come down to a numbers game and Federer's won 19 Grand Slams - that's the most of any player, any male player, so he would go down as my best of all time."

Federer's triumph at his beloved Wimbledon took his tally of Grand Slam titles to a staggering 19, four ahead of Rafael Nadal in second.

He became the oldest champion at SW19 in the open era, while at the same time, surpassing Pete Sampras' record for the most titles at The All England Club, making him the undisputed darling of Centre Court.

You know what they say, form is temporary, class is permanent. Long live Roger Federer!