Novak Djokovic beats Stefanos Tsitsipas to claim his 10th Australian Open title and to equal Nadal’s 22 grand slams
There are few things in the history of professional sport as painful as facing Novak Djokovic at prime time on Rod Laver Arena.
Inside the stadium he has made his own, Djokovic suffocates all challengers on return yet simultaneously serves them off the court. He smothers foes with his baseline aggression yet his defence makes the court feel so narrow. Over the past 15 years, no rival has been spared.
On Sunday night, Djokovic expanded an unprecedented era of dominance in men’s singles by defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) to win a record-extending 10th Australian Open title.
A year after Rafael Nadal pulled ahead in the record books on the very same court, with Djokovic absent from the tournament. The Serb has issued a response. He equals Nadal’s all-time men’s singles record of 22 grand slam titles, with the 10th crown at Melbourne Park a peerless marker of his dominance.
Djokovic is just the second man in history to win 10 or more singles majors at any grand slam tournament, after Nadal’s 14 French Open titles. He will return to world No 1 for the first time since June last year, when he lost the top ranking to Daniil Medvedev.
A year ago, Djokovic was deported from Australia on the eve of the tournament after attempting to enter Australia with an exemption from Covid vaccination. This time, he will leave Melbourne as an Australian Open champion once more.
“I have to say this has been one of the most challenging tournaments I’ve played in my life,” Djokovic said afterwards. “Not playing last year, coming back this year … I want to thank all the people who made me feel welcome to be in Melbourne, [and] in Australia. There’s a reason why I’ve played my best tennis here in Melbourne.”
“Only the team and family knows what we have been though in the last four or five weeks,” he added. “This is probably, I would say – the biggest victory in my life, considering the circumstances.”
Since his first grand slam title here 15 years ago, when a 20-year-old from Belgrade first began to achieve his dreams, Djokovic has won every grand slam and Masters 1000 event multiple times. He has gradually built arguably the most complete game the sport has ever seen. And now, the 35-year-old has given himself a chance to take the lead over Nadal in this endless grand slam race.
Source: theguradian.com
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