King Novak Djokovic Beats Thiem To Win 8th Australian Open Title
2nd February 2020
The indomitable Serb stretched his unbeaten streak this season to 13 by rallying from two sets to one down and beating the courageous fifth-seeded Austrian 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 in a near four-hour ordeal
- Novak Djokovic battled through intense pressure from Dominic Thiem to reassert his dominance at the Australian Open Sunday, claiming a record eighth title and returning to world number one
- It was his 17th Grand Slam title, moving him within two of Rafael Nadal and three of Roger Federer on the all-time list.
- Victory put him alongside his fellow legends as only the third man in history to win eight or more titles at the same Slam after Nadal (12 at the French Open) and Federer (eight at Wimbledon).
MELBOURNE, Australia-
Novak Djokovic battled through intense pressure from Dominic Thiem to reassert
his dominance at the Australian Open Sunday, claiming a record eighth title and
returning to world number one in the process.
The indomitable Serb stretched his unbeaten streak this
season to 13 by rallying from two sets to one down and beating the courageous
fifth-seeded Austrian 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 in a near four-hour ordeal.
It was his 17th Grand Slam title, moving him within two of
Rafael Nadal and three of Roger Federer on the all-time list.
Victory put him alongside his fellow legends as only the
third man in history to win eight or more titles at the same Slam after Nadal
(12 at the French Open) and Federer (eight at Wimbledon).
It also ensured he will once again be world number one when
the new rankings are released on Monday, usurping Nadal. Federer remains third
with Thiem moving up a place to a career-high fourth.
But it wasn't easy with the Serb looking lethargic and out
for the count in sets two and three before regaining his mojo after a medical
timeout to grind down the talented Thiem.
Djokovic had never before won a Slam final in seven previous
attempts when finding himself two sets to one down.
The Serb, 32, was the overwhelming favourite, but the
supremely fit and fast Thiem, 26, always had the weapons to trouble him, which
he deployed successfully for much of the match, taming his serve and unleashing
some explosive groundstrokes.
It was a nerveless start from Djokovic, who comfortably held
then put big pressure on the Thiem serve, with a forehand into the net giving
him an immediate break and a psychological edge after some monster rallies.
Thiem, though, is as strong mentally as he is physically and
he finally got on the scoreboard after another tough service game.
And against the run of play, with Djokovic seemingly in
control, he broke back, unleashing pinpoint groundstrokes to make the most of
some loose Djokovic shots.
But the world number two was unrelenting, breaking again as
Thiem served to stay in the set, with the Austrian sending down his first
double fault of the match at the crucial moment.
Remarkably, a rare Djokovic double fault handed Thiem a
break to go 2-1 up in set two with the courageous Austrian refusing to go away.
The Serb was getting frustrated, looking at his coaching box
and pointing at his head.
He refocused and once again began attacking the Thiem serve,
breaking back for 4-4, pumping his fists when the fifth seed sent a backhand
wide.
But two time warnings on his serve in the next game rattled
Djokovic and he was broken again, with the Serb losing his cool by patting the
umpire's foot at the changeover.
He had words with the official before Thiem served out the
set -- the first the Serb had dropped in an Australian Open final since 2015.
Djokovic looked dejected and was immediately broken twice in
set three as Thiem raced to a 4-0 lead, having won six games in a row with
Djokovic imploding.
The Serb was heard telling a trainer he was tired and after
losing the set, he went for a medical timeout.
He came back and the fourth set went with serve until a
Thiem double fault handed the Serb two break points and he converted to regain
control, serving out the set with an ace.
Djokovic drew on all his experience to force another break
in the deciding fifth set to take a 2-1 lead and kept his foot on the gas to
claim an eighth crown from the last 13 Australian Opens.