Australian Open 2022 Men’s Final: Rafael Nadal wins 21st Grand Slam record with five sets victory

Rafael Nadal broke the tie with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic won his 21st Grand Slam title on Sunday, beating Daniil Medvedev 2-6, 6-7 (5-7), 6-4, 6-4. , 7-5, in the 2022 Australian Open men’s singles final. Nadal made one of two sets – the only 0-2 return for Nadal in one of the major races of his career and the first since 2007 – to win the marathon five-setter.

“A month and a half ago, I didn’t know if I could go back to playing tennis again on tour.” Nadal said in a post-match speech. “And today, I’m here in front of everyone who has this trophy with me and you don’t know how much I’ve struggled to be here. I can’t thank you for all the support I’ve received since I arrived. Here.”

Nadal has repeatedly left his foot with an injury since last May, even though he had to undergo surgery on the crutches he left just four months ago. Then, in December 2021, Nadal suffered an advanced COVID-19 case. After Nadal’s first win at the 2022 Australian Open, he told Eurosport Spain: “I didn’t know a month and a half ago that I would play tennis again at a professional level due to a number of factors, including my foot and COVID.”

It was the second meeting of Medvedev and Nadal’s Grand Slam, which is establishing an epic rivalry between generations. The pair met in another final face-to-face match The 2019 US Open was also a five-set match for Nadal. Medvedev, a 25-year-old who plays almost the same as Nadal, returns far behind the base and covers the court with tremendous speed. On paper, Medvedev has the advantage of being a better hard court player, while Nadal is known to be a major player on the clay court. With 6 feet and 6 inches, Medvedev has a tremendous free kick and an impossible defense.

Medvedev aimed to pursue his 2021 U.S. Open title by winning a consecutive Grand Slam and had another chance to spoil history. In the 2021 U.S. Open final, Medvedev thwarted Djokovic’s bid for the 21st Grand Slam and Grand Slam on the calendar.. But winning Djokovic and Nadal is no easy task. In fact, Federer and Stan Wawrinka are the only players to have beaten Djokovic and Nadali in the Grand Slam finals.

At one point in this tournament match, Medvedev had two sets with 3-2 and 40-0, but Nadal with more experience was able to finish the comeback which seemed impossible. Empty transportation and decisions certainly had an impact on the five-hour, 24-minute final as well. In the first two sets, Nadal struggled with unforced errors in long rallies, but in the third set he began to successfully shorten the points. Nadal finished the third set with four straight wins and won 6-4. It was Medvedev who quickly fell behind in the fourth set, 5-3, after a few recommended shots. Nadal struggled in the fifth with a 5-3 lead, but ended up closing with a 7-5 lead. Where Medvedev was playing the third final of his young career, the 2022 Australian Open was the 29th Christmas Grand Slam final.

Nadal, 35, along with Federer and Djokovic, make up the Big Three that define the generation that has dominated the professional circuit for more than a decade. With Nadal’s 2022 Australian Open, the second of his career, he and Djokovic and Federer have broken the Grand Slam record in 20 titles. Djokovic, 34, he lost his bid to compete in this year’s Australian Open as a vaccine-free player after being denied by government officials..

In 2019, Federer had match points against Djokovic in the Wimbledon final to reach No. 21 in the Grand Slam, but he fell short. In 2021, Djokovic lost to Medvedev in the U.S. Open final, in straight sets, and was close to reaching the 21st. Now, Nadal has taken the opportunity to win the 21st title of his career. In addition, Nadal can continue to increase his lead if he plans to play in this year’s French Open, where he holds a record 13 titles. winning the clay tournament recently in 2020. Djokovic’s situation in the French Open (along with other Grand Slams) is still in doubt because he has refused to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Federer, meanwhile, has yet to return to the court in 2022 after undergoing knee surgery in August 2021.

Nadal broke the Australian Open title for the second time in a row in the longest period between the first and second titles in the same Grand Slam at the age of 13. Nadal won his first Australian Open title in 2009 against Roger Federer in five sets of 4 hours and 23 minutes. Previously, Jimmy Connors had a men’s record at the age of eight (Wimbledon 1974 and 1982). Nadal has also become the fourth man to catch all the Grand Slams in the Open Age twice.

Road to the final:

Nadal (6th place in the tournament)
R1: def. Marcos Giron, 6-1, 6-4, 6-2
R2: def. Yannick Hanfmann, 6-2, 6-3, 6-4
R3: def. No. 28 Karen Khachanov, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-1
R4: def. Adrian Mannarino, 7-6 (16-14), 6-2, 6-2
QF: def. Denis Shapovalov No. 14, 6-3, 6-4, 4-6, 3-6, 6-3
SF: def. No. 7 Matteo Berrettini, 6-3, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3

Medvedev (2nd place in the tournament)
R1: def. Henri Laaksonen, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3)
R2: def. Nick Kyrgios, 7-6 (7-1), 6-4, 4-6, 6-2
R3: Last. Botic van de Zandschulp, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2
R4: def. Maxime Cressy, 6-2, 7-6 (7-4), 6-7 (4-7), 7-5
QF: def. Felix Auger Aliassime, 6-7 (4-7), 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 7-5, 6-4
SF: def. No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas, 7-6 (7-5), 4-6, 6-4, 6-1