Novak Djokovic defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas in the Australian Open final to secure his tenth Melbourne Park trophy! Novak scored a 6-3, 7-6, 7-6 triumph in two hours and 55 minutes, celebrating his 22nd Major crown and matching Rafael Nadal’s record. With 2000 points on his tally, Novak will become world no. 1 on Monday, playing incredible tennis since the last year’s Wimbledon and showing his everlasting class. Tsitaipas failed to Djokovic in a Major final for the second time, losing crucial points and still waiting for that first Major title. Novak lost serve once and hit more winners than unforced errors. Stefanos could not follow that pace despite a valiant effort, losing ground in the mid-range rallies. Novak made a great start, winning ten points more than Stefanos in the opening set and clinching it with a single break on his tally. The Serb dropped only one point behind the first serve and gave the Greek only five return points, with no break chances.
Novak Djokovic secured his tenth Australian Open crown over Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Djokovic scored one break that carried him in front. A nine-time champion held at 15 with a forehand winner in the encounter’s first game. Tsitsipas faced two break points in the second game and defended both to avoid an early setback. Novak left those chances behind him and cracked a backhand down the line winner in the third game for a hold at love and 2-1. The Serb pushed strong on the return in the fourth game and grabbed a break after the Greek’s double fault. Djokovic produced three comfortable holds by the end of the set and held at 15 at 5-3 with a service winner to wrap up the set after 36 minutes. Stefanos raised his level in the second set and stayed in touch with Novak. Tsitsipas delivered six fine holds and created a set point on the return at 5-4. Djokovic denied it and clinched the breaker 7-4 to build a massive advantage and move closer to the finish line.
Stefanos held after deuce in game five and repeated that at 3-3 to remain on the positive side. Novak served to stay in the set at 4-5 and sprayed a backhand error to offer his opponent a set point. The Serb denied it with a forehand down the line winner and held after the rival’s forehand mistake for 5-5. The set went into a tie break, and Djokovic built a 4-1 lead. Stefanos climbed back to 4-4 before missing a routine backhand at 4-5 and offering Novak set points. The Serb seized the first with a service winner to open two sets to love advantage after an hour and 46 minutes. Djokovic took a bathroom break and lost momentum for a minute. He sprayed a backhand error in the third set’s first game to experience a break for the first time. However, Tsitsipas could not stay in front for too long, wasting a 30-0 lead in game two and allowing Djokovic to break back after a forced error. Novak painted a backhand winner in the seventh game to move 4-3 up and keep the pressure on the other side.
Stefanos responded with four winners in game eight, looking good to introduce another tie break. The Serb cracked a backhand down the line winner in the ninth game, delivering his third consecutive hold at love and forcing the Greek to serve to stay in the match. Standing two points away from the loss, Tsitsipas fired two winners to bring the game home and lock the result at 5-5. The Serb stayed focused and held at love for the fourth time in a row for a 6-5 lead. The Greek served to stay in the match for the second time in the 12th game and brought it home to introduce a tie break. Novak gained a mini-break in the second point with a forehand return winner and extended the lead when Stefanos missed a forehand in the next one. Djokovic won two points on serve to open a 5-0 gap and move closer to the finish line. The Serb lost the next three points to keep the Greek in contention. Novak created three match points with a forehand down the line winner in the ninth point and sezied the third on his serve to start a massive celebration.
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