Australian Open men’s singles final: Novak Djokovic v Dominic Thiem
Novak Djokovic facing hefty fine for touching chair umpire on way to claiming Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic furthered his legendary status in Melbourne when claiming an eighth Australian Open title in enthralling fashion on Sunday night.
Austrian Dominic Thiem did his best to dethrone the King of Melbourne Park but ultimately fell shy 6-4 4-6 2-6 6-3 6-4 in a brutal baseline battle lasting 3hr 59min.
The finalists strode to the baseline to begin the decider with the INXS hit “New Sensation” blaring from the speakers.
When Djokovic reeled off the first three games of the match in quick fashion, it appeared the final would be anything but sensational.
Instead, a thriller with significant plots twists and turns unfolded, but ultimately order in the tennis world was maintained as Djokovic continued his seemingly irresistible surge towards history.
By showing great fight to overcome a deficit in the decider, Djokovic is now the winner of 17 grand slam singles titles.
The dominant player of last decade has begun the new one as the man to beat once again at major level.
Having reeled in his great rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal on the all-time champions list in rapid fashion over the past 10 years, he is now within range of surpassing them.
Theoretically, the 32-year-old could level pass the Spanish legend Nadal and level with Roger Federer on 20 major titles by the end of this year.
But Djokovic would need to become the first man since Rod Laver to complete the Grand Slam to do so.
That may well prove a bridge too far, particularly given the dominance of Nadal in Paris and increasing evidence that younger stars such as Thiem are closing the gap on the all-time greats.
But few would rule anything out with Djokovic, such are the championship qualities he possesses, which he demonstrated once again on Rod Laver Arena in a courageous display.
Djokovic required every single attribute of excellence to reel in his rival in Thiem, who played a superb match but ultimately fell short once again in a grand slam final.
On claiming the championship, Djokovic looked with defiance towards the crowd before hugging his rival at the net.
Such a celebration looked unlikely when the Serbian superstar seemed physically and emotionally spent by the end of the third set following a barrage of blistering winners from Thiem.
Djokovic lost control initially when issued with two time violations while serving at 4-all in the second set.
This prompted him to tap umpire Damien Dumusois on the foot after dropping the first of six successive games.
Clearly irate, Djokovic expressed his dismay verbally to the umpire. It is likely he will receive a fine for the action given it is a clear rule breach.
“Great job, man, especially on the second one. You made yourself famous. Well done,” Djokovic said.
Thiem, who knocked world No 1 Nadal out of the tournament in the quarterfinal, was the dominant player in the third set.
But on returning to the court to start the fourth set after treatment, Djokovic was a reinvigorated man.
Whatever attention he received clearly proved decisive in the 32-year-old’s ability to turn around the final.
The first demonstration of Djokovic’s renewed resilience occurred when he was able to see off a break point at 1-all in the fourth set as the momentum held by the inspired Austrian began to weaken.
Thiem, who was seeking to become the first man born in the 1990s to claim a major, suffered a concentration dip when serving at 3-4, which further lifted the spirits of the Serbian.
After levelling the match with an ace, Djokovic proceeded to further his momentum when breaking his rival to move to a 2-1 lead in the deciding set.
The Austrian squandered an opportunity to retrieve the service break in the following game when netting an off-forehand on break point as the tension became a factor.
Another went begging when Djokovic successfully opted for a serve-and-volley, with Thiem unable to land a blistering backhand.
The drama continued. The Serbian star held opportunities to clinch a double-break, only for the Austrian to find a way to stay alive to move to 3-4.
It was a case of third time unlucky for the 26-year-old, who has been denied in the past two French Open finals by Rafael Nadal.
He was outstanding against the Spaniard at Roland Garros last year and once again pushed a legend to the brink in Djokovic.
Bar for a couple of miscalculations, a maiden grand slam title might be his.
The initial moment came when he double-faulted while serving at 4-5 in the first set to give his rival the early lead.
The second came when Djokovic was under significant pressure on his serve at 1-all in the fourth set.
The margins between triumph and despair are thin in tennis, but if Thiem can continue to produce tennis of this quality, surely his time will come at major level.
Djokovic is the first man in the Open era to win a grand slam tournament in three different decades. He was unbeaten throughout the Australian summer, having led Serbia to success in the ATP Cup last month.
He said Thiem has “a lot more time in your career and I am sure you will get one of the grand slam trophies and more than one”.
The now-world No 1 touched on the loss of his mentor Kobe Bryant, the basketball legend who was killed in a helicopter crash along with his daughter Gianna and seven others in Los Angeles last week.
“I would like to thank my team, my family, my brother is here,” he said.
“As Dominic was saying, there were some devastating things that started 2020 with huge bushfires in Australia and conflicts in other parts of the world.
“This is a reminder to all of us that we should stick together more than ever. Stay close to the people that care for you, that love you. It is important to be conscious and humble about things that are happening around you.”
Thiem spoke eloquently in the presentation ceremony, but touched on the bushfire disaster that struck Australia when saying it was important to put the loss into perspective.
“I would like to start by congratulating Novak,” he said.
“It is an amazing achievement and also to all your team, it is unreal what you are doing throughout all these years.
“I am really porous and happy I can compete in these times and these periods of tennis. I fell a little bit short today but I hope I can soon get revenge.”
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How the match unfolded
11.46pm: Djokovic takes the championship
Novak Djokovic has taken the Australian Open championship after a five-set epic against Dominic Thiem.
11.10pm: Djokovic fights back
After receiving medical treatment Djokovic was able to force the match into a deciding fifth set.
He's back. 😎
— Wide World of Sports (@wwos) February 2, 2020
Watch: @Channel9
Stream: https://t.co/MeRyhMjGXm#9WWOS #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/Ck2ERGBM0I
9.59pm: Thiem takes control
A frustrated Djokovic appears to be losing hold on tonight’s men’s singles final, with Thiem leading two sets to one.
Djokovic earlier lashed out at the umpire after being hit with two time violations.
“You’re making a mark in this match, great job man, you made yourself famous, well done,” said the Serbian superstar.
9.35pm: Thiem levels up men’s singles final
Game on 👊@ThiemDomi levels up the #AO2020 men's singles final at a set apiece, taking the second 6-4 against Novak Djokovic.#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/f4leK3C2fq
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) February 2, 2020
8.45pm: Djoker takes the first set
Idemo 🇷🇸
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) February 2, 2020
On his second set point, @DjokerNole breaks Dominic Thiem to seal the opening set 6-4. #AO2020 | #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/jgLp1BRPYO
7.30pm: Aussie pair falls short
Max Purcell and Luke Saville couldn’t quite pull off their Australian Open fairytale, but they plan to use their barnstorming run to the doubles final to take their careers to the next level, AAP reports.
The wildcard pairing’s march through the men’s doubles draw ended in a 6-4 6-2 loss to the American-British duo of Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury in Sunday’s final on Rod Laver Arena.
But the result gives Purcell and Saville a rankings boost that will see them gain automatic entry to this year’s grand slams, as well as a runners-up cheque for $380,000.
“This is our biggest payday by a mile,” Saville said. “We’ll let it sink in a bit, but we just want to get better as tennis players and these dollars will just go straight back into our tennis. ”... This is really going to set our year up.
“It’s definitely a massive achievement for us to do this.
“We’ve halved our ranking, we can play all the slams together and we can choose a few other (tournaments) as well.
“A payday like this will definitely allow us to play a little freer.” Saville said that playing Davis Cup and the Olympics in Tokyo was definitely on the pair’s radar following the eye-catching performance.
Purcell also banked $90,000 prize money when he qualified for the singles main draw where he was defeated in the first round by Italian Jannik Sinner. It was the first time the 21-year-old from Sydney had made it into the main draw at a grand slam and he gave much of the credit for his improvement to new coach Nathan Healey.
“The work I’ve been able to put in with Nathan has been great and having him on the road for more weeks now, being able to afford him, will be great,” Purcell said.
“He’s got a job and a family he can’t be away from all the time, so maybe I’ll get some more weeks out of him and maybe I won’t, but regardless I think my game is going in the right direction.” Purcell and Saville were bidding to become the first all-Australian pairing to win the Australian Open since Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge back in 1997. While they have ambitions to follow in the footsteps of the Woodies, they might want to work on their team nickname.
“We’re the ‘Slugs’, man,” Purcell said.
“I think it works ... I heard it a few times from the crowd today. “I think we’re going to stick with that one.”
— AAP
6.50pm: Can Thiem dethrone Djokovic?
Austrian star Dominic Thiem might just leave Melbourne a villain by the end of a superb Australian Open that continued when he defeated Alexander Zverev.
Zverev had pledged the entirety of the $4.1 million winner’s cheque to bushfire charities if he won the title but instead fell a match shy, beaten on Friday night 3-6 6-4 7-6 (3) 7-6 (4) in 3hr 41m.
Thiem’s triumph puts him into his first Australian Open final.
The 26-year-old will now attempt to dethrone Novak Djokovic, who is the “King of Melbourne Park”, in Sunday’s final.
Twice a French Open finalist, Thiem has used his phenomenal power from the baseline to bludgeon rivals including Rafael Nadal into submission over the past fortnight.
He has managed to retain his form and focus despite an unusual situation that saw Austrian great Thomas Muster’s tenure as his co-coach end midway through the tournament.
In a semi-final of swinging momentum, it was Thiem who showed the most conviction in crucial moments the longer the match progressed.
Once considered primarily a clay court dynamo, the Austrian has worked hard to become an all-surface player.
The world No 5’s dedication to training and the increased power he possesses is paying dividends.
Thiem claimed a prestigious hard court title at Indian Wells last March and is now just an upset away from winning a maiden grand slam on the surface.
He will fancy his hopes of beating Djokovic, who is aiming for an eighth Australian Open title.
At their most recent meeting in the ATP Tour Finals in London in November, Thiem edged Djokovic in a deciding tiebreaker.
He has won five of his 11 clashes against the Serbian superstar, but Djokovic is unbeaten in seven previous Australian Open finals. After a slow start to the semi-final, the Austrian made his move in the second set against a German he considers his friend.
The semi-final came alive with two magnificent points in succession as Thiem was trying to level while serving out the second set at 5-4.
On the first, the Austrian thumped a smash into the court, only to watch in disbelief as Zverev was able to return it with interest from metres behind the court for a winner.
Their exchange at the net on the following point was also superb, with the rally an example of the quickest of hands and reflexes.
On this occasion, it was the Austrian who emerged successful.
The third set encapsulated the semi-final at large in terms of momentum swings and a tiebreaker ensued. It was Thiem’s touch at the net, rather than his blistering backhand from the baseline, which gave him the opening point and ascendancy as he grabbed the lead heading into the fourth.
It, too, proved extremely tight but the Austrian prevailed.
Thiem was beaten in his two Roland Garros finals by Nadal.
“It is unbelievable. I was twice in the Roland Garros final, twice facing Rafael Nadal,” Thiem said.
“(Djokovic) is the King of Australia. I am always facing the Kings of these grand slams in the final.”
He said it took him a little while to recover from his gruelling victory over Nadal and felt nerves early on were a factor early on in the semi-final in a “tough start for me”.
He also said the energy and nerves of the occasion made him feel sick to the stomach late in the third set.
But he felt holding his focus in a game at 5-4 in the second set, which featured several startling points, was critical to his triumph, particularly given the fact that Zverev landed an incredibly high percentage (81 per cent) of first serves.
“It was an unreal match, two tiebreaks, so tough and so close,” he said.
“(Being in) the Australian Open final is absolutely unreal and what a start to the season, so far.”
He paid tribute to Zverev, who rebounded strongly from an awful ATP Cup to reach the semi-finals of a major for the first time.
“To be honest, both of us could have won this today. Maybe it was a little bit of experience … but he is still only 22, so we won’t have to wait long until he is through to his first grand slam final,” he said.
Additional reporting: Agencies
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