First ever: Djokovic defeated Nadal and won the Australian Open for the seventh time

Unlike the Australian Open women's final, in which Naomi Osaka and Petr Kvitova met for the first time in their career on the court, the main match of the men's tournament had a long history of opposition. For the first time Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal crossed on the court almost 13 years ago. It happened at Roland Garros - 2006, where the Spaniard defended his first title at the Grand Slam tournaments (TBSH).

Athletes agreed in the quarterfinals of the tournament, but the battle was short-lived. Nadal took the first two sets with the same score 6-4, after which the Serb refused to continue the fight due to injury.

After that, tennis players met at official competitions for another 51 times, and as a result, Djokovic managed not only to catch up with the Spaniard in the number of victories, but also to slightly get ahead in this race. On the eve of the Australian Open final, he had 27 won matches against 25 against his opponent. In this case, more important fights often won exactly Nadal. Of the seven finals TBSH, he took over in four, and behind him were the last three matches.

However, the most intense duel in their full-time confrontation took place seven years ago. In the final of the Australian Open - 2012 Serb won with a score of 5: 7, 6: 4, 6: 2, 6: 7 (5: 7), 7: 5. Then the athletes spent 5 hours and 53 minutes on the court, setting a record for the duration of the final matches in Grand Slam tournaments.

In anticipation of the decisive meeting on AO-2019, many experts and fans were waiting for a repetition of that historic match. An incredible form in which athletes approached the final spoke in favor of a tense confrontation scenario. Both the Serbian and the Spaniard did not experience any special problems during the tournament, but if Djokovic still lost two games (Daniel Medvedev and Denis Shapovalov respectively), then Nadal literally swept through the tournament grid, winning all meetings in three sets. In addition, the last time tennis players met in the semifinals of Wimbledon in 2018, and then they spent more than five hours on the court.

However, after the first strikes on the ball in the Australian Open final, doubts began to creep in that this match would be as equal as the previous one. Nadal was not like himself and for the first three games he won just one point.

This resulted in a break, two games at zero and 3-0 at the start of the first batch. In this case, Djokovic could lead with a greater difference, but could not realize the second break point. At his own serve, the Serb looked incredibly confident and allowed his opponent to take only one ball in 21 draws. In the end - the natural 6: 3.

The start of the second set turned out to be more equal, both athletes quite confidently took the game on their serve, but Nadal did not last long enough. Starting from the fifth game, he again began to make unforced errors, which in the end scored three times as many as his opponent (28 vs. 9). He lost his serve, after which he made a desperate attempt to reverse the break, but did not succeed.

This failure finally knocked the ground from under Raphael. With the score 4-2 in favor of the Serb, it was enough only to take the first draw on his serve, after which he first made the first double mistake in the match, and then lost seven more points in a row.

It is worth noting that Djokovic played just incredible and completed the second game with three aces in a row.

If after the first two sets, personal fans of Nadal still had a faint hope that their idol could turn the course of the meeting, then at the beginning of the third installment, she too had evaporated. Already in the third game Novak again took delivery of the opponent, and this time it was not without the help of the Spaniard, who at a crucial moment made a double mistake in the service.

Confidently taking his pitch, the Serb led with a difference of two games and did not miss his. Only when the score was 3: 2 did he allow his opponent to earn his first break point in the match, but he himself missed his chance, having again made an unforced error. Djokovic won his serve, and three through the game for the fifth time in the match took someone else and set the final score of the meeting - 6: 3, 6: 2, 6: 3.

As a result, the athletes spent on the court only 2 hours and 4 minutes, which was the shortest final of the Australian Open over the past 16 years. In 2003, Andre Agassi took 1 hour and 16 minutes to deal with Rainer Schuttler.

But if Djokovic failed to win the unofficial title of the winner of the fastest finals in the history of the Australian Open, he was able to take the first place in the number of victories in the tournament.

The Serb for the seventh time won in Melbourne and became the sole leader on this indicator in the men's singles. He previously shared first place with Roger Federer, who won AO-2017 and AO-2018.

In addition, the Serb won his 15th Grand Slam title and came in third place in history in the number of victories in the most prestigious tennis competitions. He surpassed the American Pete Sampras (14) and is now second only to Federer (20) and Nadal (17).

After the match, 32-year-old Nadal thanked Djokovic for the excellent game, and also told him what significance the performance at the Australian Open - 2019 has for him.

“Today, Novak has shown an extreme level of tennis. The last two weeks have been unforgettable. Last year, I was recovering from injury for a long time, I could have missed this tournament. I believe that I showed a good game for two weeks, but today was clearly not my day, ”said Nadal during the awards ceremony.

31-year-old Djokovic also paid tribute to his rival and admitted that he admires them.

“I would like to express my gratitude to Rafa. This match was hard for you. During your career, you suffered a lot of injuries, but you showed me and other colleagues what the expression “fighting spirit” means. Thank you for that, ”replied Djokovic.

He also recalled that he himself recently faced similar difficulties and was forced to miss many tournament appearances due to injury.

“12 months ago I was in a difficult situation myself - I had an operation. Now I am trying to realize what I have been able to do in the past six months. Today's success, as well as the victories at Wimbledon and the US Open - this is incredible. I have no words, ”Djokovic concluded.

Serbian winning streak in Grand Slam tournaments has already achieved three victories in a row. In 2018, Novak raised the coveted cup, first at Wimbledon, and then at the US Open. And if nothing extraordinary happens, then at the end of May 2019, Djokovic will fight for the fourth consecutive TBSH title - Roland Garros starts in Paris.