Roger Federer broke down in tears after claiming his seventh Grand Slam title with a four-set victory over unseeded Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis in the Australian Open final.

The Swiss world number one lost the first set and then went a break down in the second but powered back to win 5-7 7-5 6-0 6-2.

As well as Federer's successive Australian Open win, it was also his third Grand Slam triumph in a row after winning Wimbledon and the US Open last year.

Only Pete Sampras has achieved that feat since Federer's hero Rod Laver accomplished it in 1969 and he had to choke back the tears after receiving the trophy from the Australian legend.

"I don't know what to say," an emotional Federer said. "I would like to congratulate Marcos first, well done."

After pausing to regain his composure, he continued: "I hope you know how much this means to me. It is all coming out now, I have had some hard speeches but this is a rough road now.

"I want to congratulate Marcos and his team on a great effort and my team and the hundreds and thousands of fans who came out, you make it so special. Without you it is not the same.

"I think the sponsors too chose a great event to sponsor. I hope it is going to last another 101 years.

"Last but not least I want to thank Rod Laver for presenting the trophy."

Federer was not at his usual clinical best as he found his 20-year-old opponent far tougher expected but he hit back to maintain his record of never having lost a grand slam final.

For Baghdatis, the world number 54, it was a disappointing end to a tournament in which he had beaten three top-10 players.

"I had two great weeks, to play the final and lose, it is just amazing," Baghdatis said.

Both players began soundly, each holding their first two service games with ease.

However, it was the young Cypriot who drew first blood with a break of Federer's third service game to take the upper hand early.

Baghdatis pushed his opponent hard and varied the pace of the ball with poise and skill as he forced a spate of errors to capitalise on his first break point.

However, the Cypriot's jubilation was shortlived as the Swiss maestro bounced back with his own service break.

Baghdatis proved to be his own worst enemy as he double faulted to gift Federer the important levelling game.

As the nerves settled, both players' games began to appear more composed and the error rate subsided.

With the score all square on 5-5 it was again Baghdatis who exacted a crucial break, taking Federer's service game on his second break point to lead 6-5.

The first set followed shortly after when the unseeded youngster held his serve to win it in 43 minutes.

Baghdatis then started the second set in deadly fashion with a break of Federer's opening service game. The world number one was struggling to control an errant forehand and he defended two break points before slamming the ball into the net on the third.

The Cypriot then quickly consolidated the important service break with a relatively comfortable hold of his own service game to lead 2-0.

The usually composed game of Federer appeared to be loosening as Baghdatis continued to apply pressure and the top seed was soon staring down the barrel of two break points, one coming from a double fault.

However, he managed to hold them off with some gritty play to reduce his opponent's lead to 2-1.

Federer then responded with a huge game to break Baghdatis' next service game to level the score to put himself back in the contest.

The world number one started to play a more expansive game as he began to rectify his troubling forehand.

With the score poised on 4-3 he had the chance to take the upper hand but could not break Baghdatis as the Cypriot held off a break point with two strong serves.

However, Federer's form began to return and the top seed finally sealed the second set when he broke the serve of Baghdatis to triumph 7-5.

This proved to be the turning point in the match as the momentum swung in favour of the champion.

The ice-cool Swiss began to tighten the screws and he started well with an easy hold of his opening service game.

He quickly backed this up with an easy break of Baghdatis' service game to take a commanding 2-0 lead.

The third set was soon all Federer's as he broke twice more to win it 6-0 in just 24 minutes.

The match then seemed to be almost out of the grasp of the battling Cypriot as Federer really began to put his foot on the accelerator in the fourth set.

The top seed quickly raced to a 3-0 lead with another well-timed break of his opponent's serve. With Federer having won 11 games in a row, Baghdatis managed to stifle his dwindling performance to defend a break point to hold his service game.

However, this resistance was soon demolished by the clinical Swiss star as he raced away to the victory.