Djokovic edges Thiem in thrilling 5-set final
Serb clinches 17th Grand Slam, No. 1 ranking • Comeback kid Kenin tops Muguruza to claim 1st major
MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic endured a fierce challenge to his Melbourne Park reign before overhauling Dominic Thiem 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Sunday to clinch an eighth Australian Open crown and reclaim the world No. 1 ranking.
While Rafael Nadal rules Roland Garros with 12 titles, Djokovic holds sway in the title match at Rod Laver Arena having never lost a final in Melbourne Park. Yet on Sunday the Serb was under siege for much of the thriller.
For the first time in eight Melbourne finals, Djokovic was forced to come back when trailing after three sets, rocked by the power and determination of Thiem.
But as he so often does, the Serb found a way. He captured the decisive break in the third game of the final set, then held firm as Thiem made desperate assaults on his serve.
Going for broke in a nerve-shredding final game, the fifth seeded Austrian went for the lines but missed on the first championship point to hand Djokovic one of his most hard-earned triumphs.
“This is definitely my favorite court, my favorite stadium in the world and I am blessed to hold this trophy again,” said Djokovic after being presented with the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup by 2005 winner Marat Safin.
Four months after Nadal stopped Russian Daniil Medvedev in the US Open final, the Serb’s 17th Grand Slam title continued the “Big Three’s” reign over the majors.
Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer have now won 13 Grand Slam titles in succession, dating back to Federer’s 2017 win at Melbourne Park.
Thiem, seen as one of the greatest hopes to end the Big Three domination, was consigned to his third defeat in a major final following losses in the last two French Open deciders to Nadal.
“Unreal what you are doing through all these years. You and two other guys have brought men’s tennis to a completely new level,” the 26-year-old told Djokovic at the trophy ceremony. “Well I fell a little bit short but I hope I can get revenge soon.”
While Thiem started heavy-legged after spending a total of eight hours beating Alexander Zverev and Nadal in his previous two matches, Djokovic charged out of the blocks to take the first set.
But the match turned on its head at 4-4 in the second when Djokovic became flustered after being called twice for breaching the service clock.
Conceding the set with a terrible backhand, a shell-shocked Djokovic lost six games in a row as Thiem, blasting winners at will, roared to a 4-0 lead in the third.
It looked gloomy for Djokovic, who had destroyed Nadal in three sets in the 2019 final. But the match turned again when Thiem gave up a double-fault to concede two break points, then blasted a forehand long to fall 5-3 behind in the fourth set.
In a flash, Djokovic had served out the set to love, sealing it with an ace.
Having spent about six hours more time on court than Djokovic through the tournament, the strain of a long campaign began to tell on Thiem but he refused to crumble in the fifth.
He had two chances to break back in the fourth game but Djokovic nervelessly canceled the threat before holding firm in the nerve-jangling finish.
In Saturday’s women’s final, Sofia Kenin showed grit and combativeness on the way to her maiden Grand Slam title on Saturday,
as the 21-year-old American fought her way back from a set down to beat Spain’s Garbine Muguruza.
Kenin may not have the strength or build of her Spanish opponent, but what she lacked in power she made up for in willpower as she took down double Grand Slam winner Muguruza 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.
Born in Moscow to Russian immigrants, the 14th seed became the youngest American since Serena Williams in 2002 to win a major, with Muguruza double faulting on Kenin’s second match point to end an engrossing contest of over two hours.
“I just want to say my dream has officially come true. If you have a dream, go for it, because it can come true,” said Kenin after lifting the Daphne Akhurst Memorial Cup.
On a wet and cold evening, Kenin and Muguruza produced a fitting and intense final under the closed roofs of a packed Rod Laver Arena.
Muguruza had arrived in Melbourne suffering from a virus that forced her to quit the Hobart International, but the Spaniard was soon back to playing to her strength which helped her reach the top of the women’s rankings in 2017.
Some of the inconsistency that led to her slipping to 36th in the rankings last year resurfaced against Kenin, however, as the Spaniard blew hot and cold with her serve, getting 57% of first serves in while mixing nine aces with eight double faults.
The 26-year-old former Wimbledon and French Open winner, who was playing her fourth Grand Slam final, hit four winners more than her opponent but that came at the price of almost double the number of unforced errors.
Kenin, who had never advanced beyond the fourth round at a Grand Slam before this match, was definitely not short on confidence, however.
The American tied world No. 1 Ash Barty for hard-court wins (38) in 2019 when she won three singles titles to reach a careerhigh world ranking of 12th.
In doubles, American Rajeev Ram picked up his first tennis men’s title at a Grand Slam on Sunday with partner Joe Salisbury of Britain, taming the local wild card pairing of Max Purcell and Luke Saville in straight sets, 6-4, 6-2. Timea Babos and Kristina Mladenovic won their second Australian Open women’s doubles crown in three years on Friday, beating top seeds Hsieh Su-Wei and Barbora Strycova 6-2. 6-1.