Novak Djokovic ripped off his shirt and let out a primal scream, flexing his torso the way a prize fighter would after a desperate, last-round knockout. This was the final act in Djokovic’s 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 victory over Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final — a sweat-drenched, sneaker-squeaking 5 hour, 53-minute endurance contest that ended at 1:37 a.m.
Victoria Azarenka started celebrating, then suddenly did a double-take to ask her coach, “What happened?” The answer: She had just produced one of the most lopsided Australian Open final victories to capture a Grand Slam title and the No. 1 ranking for the first time. Azarenka routed three-time Grand Slam winner Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-0 in 1 hour, 22 minutes on Saturday night, winning 12…
The turning point in the longest men’s final ever at a Grand Slam came when 10-time major winner Rafael Nadal went for a bit too much on a backhand after more than 5 hours on court. Novak Djokovic outlasted Nadal in 5 hours, 53 minutes to win a third Australian Open title, finishing off the 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 win at 1:37 a.m.
American Bethanie Mattek-Sands and Romanian Horia Tecau won the mixed doubles title at the Australian Open on Sunday, beating Elena Vesnina and Leander Paes 6-3, 5-7, 10-3. It was the first Grand Slam victory for the 26-year-old Mattek-Sands, who is known as much for her eccentric on-court attire as her tennis.
Rafael Nadal wasn’t the only person who left Rod Laver Arena disappointed on Monday morning.
As Novak Djokovic was changing clothes for the awards ceremony following his record-breaking Australian Open win over Rafael Nadal, he walked over to the crowd and tossed his shirt to a young fan. At least, that’s what he intended to do. His throw ended up being intercepted by a middle-aged woman who showed no remorse for grabbing the sweaty memento away from a teenager.
Hey lady, just because you call for it doesn’t mean it’s yours. You’re like the 40-year-old man who catches a foul ball over an elementary school student at a baseball game. For shame! (But between you and that ballboy, you could make a pretty good defensive backfield.)
I have to admit though, I’m reluctant to fully blame the interceptor because Djokovic bears partial responsibility. Giving a souvenir to a young fan is always appreciated. Yet if anyone in the crowd needed a new shirt, it was clearly this guy:
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal had just played the longest match in Grand Slam finals history. How did Australian Open officials thank them for the effort? By making them stand through what seemed like the longest awards presentation in Grand Slam history.
Except that the rivals were so exhausted from their five-hour, 53 minute epic that they could barely stay upright. As numerous executives from sponsor companies and Australian tennis droned on about leadership and history, Djokovic and Nadal spent time stretching, resting their hands on their knees and even leaning up against the net for support. ESPN’s Chris Fowler joked that both players would have accepted half as much prize money if they were allowed to leave the court to go lay down.
Going from nearly six hours of activity to 10 minutes of standing in place is like a formal invitation for cramping. Thankfully, someone at Rod Laver Arena noticed the pain of Djokovic and Nadal and retrieved them some chairs.
How do you spell relief? S-I-T-T-I-N-G.
It didn’t last long though. Just as Nadal was given his chair, he was called up to the podium to accept his runner-up trophy.
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In one of the most extraordinary finals in Grand Slam history, Novak Djokovic continued his reign atop the game and his mastery of Rafael Nadal with a record-setting 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 victory in the Australian Open final.
The match lasted five hours, 53 minutes, shattering the record for the longest Grand Slam final in history. It was also the longest continuous match in major history and the third-longest overall.
[Related: Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal can barely stand after five-set Australian Open final]
For Djokovic, it was his third straight major title. He joins Rod Laver, Pete Sampras, Roger Federer and Nadal as the only men in the Open Era to accomplish that feat. Djokovic also has won seven finals in a row against Nadal, including in each of those three Slam finals.
Nadal took the first set, but rarely has getting out to an early lead inspired so little confidence. Djokovic’s game was off early in the match and it took Nadal 80 minutes to capitalize and grind out the set. Djokovic reasserted himself in the next two sets and appeared to be on his way to cruising to a four-set victory when he held a 40-0 lead on Nadal’s serve at 4-4 in the fourth set.
But Nadal fought back with six gutty points and went on to extend the match by winning a fourth-set tiebreak.
In the fifth set, Nadal seemed to have the upper hand. Djokovic was in his 10th hour on the court since Friday and his legs showed it. Nadal broke at 3-2 and had an easy backhand to go up 40-15 on his serve. He pushed it wide, Djokovic came back to break. What was close to being a 5-2 Nadal lead was back on serve at 4-3.
Even as the match stretched past previous records, the top two players in the world were exchanging rallies of over 30 shots. Djokovic broke Nadal at 5-5 and then held his serve to take the final set, 7-5. By the time it was over, it was past 1:30 a.m. in Melbourne.
[Related: Vlade Divac roots on Novak Djokovic in Australian Open final]
Nadal may have been the loser on the scoreboard, but the match was won by Djokovic, not lost by Nadal. Though Rafa played a passive game for the middle sets, he ramped it up late, turning aggressive on Djokovic’s serve and going for more winners as the hours grew later. Djokovic was simply better. He was able to hold serve easier throughout the match and put pressure on Nadal with his assertive return game.
The loss may not be as devastating for Nadal as you’d expect. Had he gone down without much of a fight then there could have been concern that the gulf between he and Djokovic was too wide. The pain of losing the longest match in Grand Slam finals history will linger, but at least Nadal knows he’s closer than he’s been to Djokovic in 13 months.
For Djokovic, the win continues one of the most dominant stretches the sport has ever seen. He’ll go for the Djoko Slam (holding all four majors at once) at the French Open. There’s even legitimate talk of a real Grand Slam possibility.
But as dawn grew nearer in Melbourne, Djokovic wasn’t looking forward.
“We made history tonight,” he said after the match.
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Over the course of his five-hour marathon final with Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic has gone from breaking his racquets to trying to devour them. Hopefully it was one of the gluten-free models.
Hip-hop mogul, actor and that taking advocate Diddy was in Novak Djokovic’s player’s box during his epic five-set victory over Roger Federer in the US Open semifinals. When it was learned that another rap star, Kanye West, would be in Melbourne this weekend performing at a concert, inquiring minds (OK, just me) wondered if Djokovic would be getting cheered on by Mr. West. He was at Djokovic’s French Open semifinal match, after all.
Kanye wasn’t there, but Djokovic had other star power watching him instead: Former NBA All-Star, and Serbian basketball legend, Vlade Divac. The two are sporting ambassadors for their native country. Divac is the president of the nation’s Olympic committee. Something tells me Nole will be earning a berth on that squad later this year.
Though Divac’s presence wasn’t immediately felt on the court, if you see Djokovic flop in the middle of a point, now you’ll know why.
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If the headline sounds too salacious, it’s because first sets that begin at 3:40 a.m. ET and end at 5 a.m. ET tend to lead to such hyperbole, especially before the first pot of coffee has been brewed. But, rest assured, a shirtless Novak Djokovic did break a racquet in disgust midway through his first-set loss to Rafael Nadal in the finals of the 2012 men’s Australian Open.
The defending tournament champion was broken early in the first set of Sunday night’s match and reacted as all the great champions, from Bill Tilden to Ivan Lendl to Pete Sampras have: He took off his shirt and threw his racquet on the ground.
Djokovic’s racquet and wardrobe change (from a white shirt to a black shirt), provided some immediate help, as he broke back to even the match at three. A later Nadal break gave the Spaniard the first set. It was a positive development for Rafa: He’s won the first set 134 times in Grand Slams matches. He’s gone on to win 133 of them.
