Novak Djokovic claims 10th Australian Open title, 22nd Slam

MELBOURNE, Australia — Novak Djokovic climbed onto the stands at Rod Laver Arena to celebrate his 10th Australian Open championship and record-breaking 22nd Grand Slam title on Sunday, and after jumping and clenching his fists with his team , he collapsed on his back crying.

Returning to the court, Djokovic sat down on his touchline bench, buried his face in a white towel and sobbed some more.

That trip to Australia was far more successful than the one a year ago – when he was deported for not having been vaccinated against COVID-19 – despite being difficult in his own way: a bad hamstring; an extrajudicial riot involving his father. But Djokovic has achieved everything he could have wished for on his return, resuming his winning streak at Melbourne Park and making it back to the top of tennis, declaring: “This is probably, I would say, the biggest win of my life life.”

Only briefly challenged in the final, Djokovic was simply better in the crucial moments and beat Stefanos Tsitsipas 6: 3, 7: 6 (4), 7: 6 (5). As a bonus, Djokovic will jump from No. 5 to No. 1 in the ATP rankings, a position he has already held for more weeks than any other man.

“This was one of the most challenging tournaments I’ve ever played in my life considering the circumstances. Didn’t play last year; come back this year,” said Djokovic, who wore a white zip-up jacket with a ’22’ across the chest. “And I want to thank all the people who made me feel welcome, made me feel like I was in Melbourne, they made me feel like they were in Australia.”

The 35-year-old from Serbia extended his unbeaten streak to 28 games in Melbourne, the longest streak there in the Open era, which dates back to 1968. He adds the No. 10 trophy to the seven from Wimbledon, three from the US Open – where he was also absent last year due to a lack of coronavirus shots – and two from the French Open to face rival Rafael Nadal at the being able to keep up with a man most of the time.

Only two women – Margaret Court at 24 and Serena Williams at 23 – are ahead of him.

This was also the 93rd ATP Tour-level title for Djokovic, breaking the fourth-most title with Nadal.

“I want to thank you for taking our sport this far,” Tsitsipas told Djokovic.

“He’s the greatest,” said Tsitsipas, “who has ever held a tennis racket.”

Djokovic attended his 33rd Major final, Tsitsipas his second – and the 24-year-old from Greece also lost the other to Djokovic at the 2021 French Open.

On a chilly evening under a cloudy sky and with a soundtrack of chants from supporters of both men prompting repeated requests for silence from the chair umpire, Djokovic was consistently superior, particularly in the two tie-breaks.

In the first he took a 4-1 lead, then reeled off the last three points. He led 5-0 in the final tie-break and when it was over he pointed to his temple before screaming, a prelude to all the tears.

“Very emotional for us. Very emotional for him,” said Djokovic’s coach Goran Ivanisevic. “This is a great achievement. It’s been a really tough three weeks for him. He managed to overcome everything.”

Djokovic acknowledged all the issues that weighed on him.

“It took a tremendous amount of mental and emotional energy,” Djokovic said, “to really nail it, to keep my focus.”

Remember: it’s not as if Tsitsipas played all that badly, save for a series of early mistakes that seemed more a product of the tension than anything else. Djokovic was too adamant. Too accurate with his shots, making only 22 unforced errors, 20 fewer than his opponent. Too fast and flexible on the run (except when Djokovic crashed to the left).

“I did everything possible,” said Tsitsipas, who would also have moved up to No. 1 with a win and would replace Carlos Alcaraz, who missed the Australian Open with a leg injury.

Perhaps. Yet Djokovic shoves and shoves and shoves some more until it’s the opponent who is slightly less than perfect on a swing, either missing or providing an opening to jump.

That came as Tsitsipas held his first break point – which was also a set point – while leading 5-4 in the second and Djokovic serving 30-40. Could that be a pivot? Could Djokovic give way? Could Tsitsipas soar?

Oh no.

A 15-stroke point ended with Djokovic hitting a cross-court forehand winner that felt like a statement. Tsitsipas missed two shots: a long backhand, a wide forehand. That felt like a surrender. Even when Tsitsipas actually broke in the third, Djokovic broke right back.

Over the past two weeks, Djokovic has been on his mind for more than just forehand and backhand.

There was the not-so-minor thing with last year’s legal saga – he’s alternately admitted it served as motivation, but also recently said “I’m over it” – and curiosity about the kind of reception he’d get get if he was allowed to enter Australia because of the easing of the pandemic restrictions.

He heard a lot of loud support but also had to deal with some persistent heckling throughout the competition, including applause after errors on Sunday.

There was the sore left hamstring, which was heavily bandaged for every game – until the finals when only a single piece of beige sports tape was visible.

And then there was the matter of his father Srdjan being filmed with a group waving Russian flags – one with a picture of Vladimir Putin – after Djokovic’s quarter-finals. The tournament banned spectators from wearing flags of Russia or Belarus as they would cause disruption due to the ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Djokovic and his father said Srdjan thought he was with Serbian fans.

However, Srdjan Djokovic did not feature in either the semifinals or his son’s final.

“We both agreed,” said the younger Djokovic, who caught up with dad for a hug after Sunday’s game, “it would probably be better if he wasn’t there.”

Despite everything, Djokovic excelled – as so often.

“It’s been a long journey,” he said, “but a very special one.”