Djokovic faced Tsitsipas in a title match at Melbourne Park and there was a lot at stake. The Serbian was in good spirits from the start and only lost 3 games in the opener.
Tsitsipas, after making his first Australian Open final, improved in the second set. The first serve helped, it put pressure on Djokovic and the second set turned into a tie-break. Although the Serb let his 4-1 tie-break lead evaporate, Djokovic regrouped, took the second set and with him the game under his control.
After a medical break at the start of game three, Djokovic lost serve for the first time that night as Tsitsipas played with even more confidence and tried to get back into the game. However, the Greek couldn’t take advantage of the break. At the same time, he maintained his good level of play and another tie-break eventually followed, in which Djokovic took the lead with three match points, but Tsisipas was not yet ready to give up. He saved the first two, but was powerless in an attempt to save the third. Djokovic lifted the winner’s trophy at Melbourne Park for a record 10th time.
Thanks to the triumph, Novak Djokovic achieved several important achievements:
No. 1. Novak Djokovic moved up to 4th place in the all-time men’s singles rankings
Novak Djokovic started the Australian Open with Rafael Nadal’s 92 ATP tournament wins and ranked fourth in the all-time men’s singles rankings with the Spaniard.
Three weeks later, Djokovic triumphed at Melbourne Park for the 10th time and took a solo fourth place in the standings. Now, the Serb is only one victory away from Ivan Lendl (94). Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103) are the two leading players.
No. 2. Djokovic becomes the third oldest player in the Open era to win the Australian Open
Novak Djokovic hasn’t lost at the Australian Open since his fourth-round elimination in 2018. It’s now a record 28 matches unbeaten, two better than Andre Agassi.
After missing the 2022 tournament due to an ensuing expulsion for refusing to be vaccinated, Djokovic returned in style to Melbourne Park this year, dropping just one set in the entire tournament.
The 35-year-old has become the third oldest Open Era player to win the Australian Open.
Only Ken Rosewall (1971-72) and Roger Federer (2018) were older than Djokovic when they won at Melbourne Park.
No. 3. Second Open Era player to win his first 10 tournament finals.N
Novak Djokovic extended his perfect Australian Open final record to a stunning 10-0.
In doing so, he became the second Open Era player to win his first ten tournament finals. Rafael Nadal at Roland Garros was the first player to do so.
It is also the first time that a tennis player has won the Grand Slam ten times on a hard court.
Number 4. Tied with Rafael Nadal for the most Grand Slam titles among male players.
After beating Cisipas, Novak Djokovic equaled Rafael Nadal (22) for most Grand Slam men’s singles titles in the open era. The Spaniard was the defending champion at Melbourne Park but lost in the second round.
Djokovic is now tied with Steffi Graf in the Open Era Grand Slam singles rankings, with only Serena Williams (23) leading the pack.
No. 5. Second Open-era tennis player to win the same Grand Slam 15 years apart.
Novak Djokovic continued his love affair with Melbourne Park, where he won his first Grand Slam 15 years ago.
A decade and a half later, Djokovic returned to the arena to claim a record 10th title. In doing so, he became the second Open Era male player to win the same Grand Slam tournament 15 years apart.
In this regard, Djokovic is only ahead of Rafael Nadal, who won his first French Open title in 2005 and 14th in 2022, after 17 years.
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Source: Sport
I’m Rose Brown , a journalist and writer with over 10 years of experience in the news industry. I specialize in covering tennis-related news for Athletistic, a leading sports media website. My writing is highly regarded for its quick turnaround and accuracy, as well as my ability to tell compelling stories about the sport.
