By Howard Fendrich -
AP
Novak Djokovic was simply too good in the crucial moments, taking his 10th Australian Open title and 22nd Grand Slam trophy in total after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5). ) in the final this Sunday at the Rod Laver arena.
The victory allowed Djokovic to
return to the top of the ATP rankings.
The 35-year-old Serbian tennis player did not play in last year's Australian Open after being deported from the country because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19.
Restrictions have since been eased and this time he was able to obtain a visa despite the fact that he is still not receiving injections against the disease caused by the new coronavirus.
Novak Djokovic kisses the Australian Open champion trophy after defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final, this Sunday, January 29, in Melbourne.Aaron Favila / AP
Djokovic extended his winning streak at the hard court tournament to 28 matches.
His tenth trophy in Australia extends the record he already held in Melbourne.
His 22
major
championships — which also include seven at Wimbledon, three at the US Open and two at Roland Garros —
match Rafael Nadal's mark for most men's tour titles in tennis history.
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“I want to say that this has been one of the most demanding tournaments that I have played in my life.
Not being able to play last year, coming back this year,” said Djokovic, wearing a white jacket with the number 22 on his chest.
"And he wants to thank all the people who made me feel welcome, who made me feel welcome, to be in Melbourne, to be in Australia."
"It's the biggest in history"
He was superior to Tsitsipas throughout the match, but especially in the two
tiebreakers
.
Djokovic opened up a 4-1 lead in the early stages and when 4 equals were seen, he took the last three points.
He led 5-0 in the final
tiebreaker
and when he finished he pointed to his temple, climbed into the stands and fist bumped and jumped with his coach Goran Ivasinevic and other members of his team before collapsing in tears.
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Djokovic returned to the court, sat on his side bench, covered his face with a white towel and let more tears escape.
Margaret Court, with 24 titles, Serena Williams with 23 and Steffi Graff with 22 are the most successful women in tennis.
The one won on Sunday was also Djokovic's 93rd title on the ATP Tour and allowed him to break a tie with Nadal for fourth place.
Jimmy Connors leads that list with 109 titles.
Novak Djokovic celebrates in the stands with his team after defeating Tsitsipas. Aaron Favila / AP
“I did my best,” Tsitsipas declared.
With the title, Tsitsipas would have reached number one for the first time and replaced Carlos Alcaraz, who rose to the top after winning the US Open last September but did not participate in the Australian Open due to a leg injury.
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Although it wasn't much of a consolation for Tsitsipas, there was no shame in not beating Djokovic in Melbourne.
Challenging his mastery of those blue hard courts is as monumental a task as facing Nadal on the red clay of Roland Garros.
"It's the biggest in history that a racket has taken
," Tsitsipas said.
