Novak Djokovic Topples Tsitsipas To Clinch Historic Australian Open Title - UBITENNIS
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Novak Djokovic Topples Tsitsipas To Clinch Historic Australian Open Title

Djokovic has become the first man in history to win the title at Melbourne Park for the 10th time and only the second to win the same Grand Slam 10 or more times.

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Novak Djokovic has drawn level with nemesis Rafael Nadal for the most Grand Slam titles won by a male tennis player after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets to win the Australian Open.

Playing in front of a highly animated crowd on the Rod Laver Arena, Djokovic rallied to a 6-3, 7-6(4), 7-6(5), win over Tsitsipas to become only the fifth player – male or female – to have won a 22nd major title. The triumph has also secured his return to world No.1 on Monday for the first time since June. Djokovic is the third-oldest man to win the Australian Open title and the first to do so for the 10th time in their career.

Taking on third seed Tsitsipas in what was a tense encounter on Sunday, the Serbian claimed victory with the help of 36 winners compared to 22 unforced errors. Winning 75% of his service points and converting two out of five of his break point chances. He has now beaten Tsitsipas in nine out of their 11 Tour meetings.

“What a journey it has been for me and my family. You guys, I don’t know if you will ever forgive me for what I have done to you over the years. This trophy is as much for you as it is for me,” Djokovic said afterwards. 
“This has been one of the most challenging tournaments I have played in my life, considering the circumstances. Not playing last year, coming back this year. There is a reason I have played my best tennis here – in front of legends like Rod Laver.
“Only my team and my family know what I have been through over the last four or five weeks. I think this has to be the biggest victory of my life, given the circumstances.”

The showdown featuring 35-year-old Djokovic and 24-year-old Tsitsipas represented the largest age gap between two players contesting an Australian Open men’s final in the Open Era. From the onset, it was Djokovic who dictated proceedings with the use of some of his best tennis. Taking the ball early and applying pressure directly onto his opponent’s backhand, the Serbian broke for the first time in the fourth game of the match with the help of a Tsitsipas double fault to move ahead 3-1. Djokovic, who won 20 out of his 25 service points during the opener, then eased his way to a 5-3 lead before sealing the first set with a serve out wide that forced an unforced error from across the court. 

Heading into the second frame, the tension between the two was rising. Both players remained firm behind their serve with Djokovic for the first time showing a glimpse of frustration with gestures towards his coach, Goran Ivanisevic, in the crowd. Then down 4-5, he saved a set point by prevailing in a 15-shot rally against Tsitsipas with a forehand winner. 

With little to distinguish between the two, it was a roller-coaster tiebreaker which separated them where seven out of the 11 points played saw the server lose the point. Djokovic eased to a 4-1 lead at the expense of some lacklustre shot-making from Tsitsipas which saw him hit a duo of forehand errors. Then it was his turn to succumb to the pressure after producing a backhand error followed by a double fault to allow the Greek to come back and draw level. Despite the blip, the world No.5 weathered the storm to clinch a two-set lead. 

Another mishap would take place at the start of the third set. After taking a five-minute toilet break, Djokovic was broken immediately when he returned to the court before breaking back immediately in the following game. Although he soon regained momentum in the match with the help of a clinical service display where he won 17 points in a row en route to yet another tiebreaker. 

In what was a case of deja vu, Tsitsipas’ unforced errors were his undoing as he fell behind 0-5 before managing to claw his way back into contention. Meanwhile, Djokovic had to contend with a rowdy crowd as well as his opponent. Two Championship points came and went before he prevailed on his third. Bringing the 10-time champion to tears as he celebrated with his team in the crowd just after the match. 

Djokovic’s sheer emotion comes as no surprise considering his recent history in Australia. 12 months ago he was deported from the country following a legal battle over the validity of his visa and then received an automatic three-year ban from returning. A penalty that wasn’t waived by the government until last November. Then in this year’s tournament, he had to contend with a hamstring injury with some accusing him of saying the problem was more severe than it was. 

Yet few can dispute Djokovic’s achievements in the sport which was hailed by runner-up Tsitsipas during the trophy ceremony. It is the second time Tsitsipas has lost to him in a Grand Slam final after the 2021 French Open. 

“Novak, I don’t know what to say, the numbers say it all,” Tsitsipas said of Djokovic. “It’s been an unbelievable journey for you and I admire what you have done for our sport.
“He’s one of the greatest in our sport – the greatest to have ever held a tennis racket. I’d like to thank you for pushing our sport so far.
“It’s not easy to be here again in the final of a grand slam. But thank you to my team, we are getting there.”

Djokovic has now won 28 consecutive matches at the Australian Open and is 12-0 so far this season. 

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Alcaraz Halts Sinner’s Winning Streak To Reach The Final In Indian Wells

Carlos Alcaraz earns the right to defend his title at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells fending off Jannik Sinner’s assault to his ATP no. 2 spot

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Jannik Sinner (left) and Carlos Alcaraz (right) - Indian Wells 2024 (photo Twitter X @BNPPARIBASOPEN)

All good things come to an end. Jannik Sinner was on a 19-match winning streak since his loss to Novak Djokovic in the final of the Nitto ATP Finals that included his first Grand Slam win in Australia last January, and appeared as the most in-form player at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, the first Masters 1000 tournament of the season. But as he faced Carlos Alcaraz in an eagerly-awaited semifinal, he was unable to continue his quest for the third consecutive title of the season, succumbing to the Spaniard 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.

The match was a face-off for the no. 2 spot in the ATP ranking that Alcaraz will still occupy next Monday regardless of the result of Sunday’s final, and this is a much-needed confidence boost for him after a disappointing start of the season where he was handily beaten in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open by Zverev and did not win any tournament during the South American clay court swing where he was ousted by Nicolas Jarry in Buenos Aires and had to retire for an ankle injury at the Rio Open.

The match, originally scheduled for 1.30 pm Pacific Time, had to be suspended for over three hours after only three games because of an unusual downpour. As the match resumed, Sinner appeared once again the perfectly-tuned machine that had been crushing opponents with metronomic regularity for the past weeks while Alcaraz was struggling to keep up with his opponent’s pace from the baseline.

The first set was smooth sailing for the Italian who cruised to a comprehensive 6-1 in 27 minutes: Alcaraz was tentative from the baseline and could not find the right position to fire his screamers and change the tactical discourse of the match. “Then at the beginning of the second set, as I saw he was making a lot of mistakes, I tried to be as solid as possible when I should have kept pushing instead – Sinner said during his press conference – and that’s what cost me the match in the end”.

While serving at 1-2 in the second set, a few uncharacteristic forehand mistakes started to dot his thus far spotless game, and that cost him the break that sent Alcaraz flying to a 4-1 advantage. The Spaniard then found the confidence to change his return position and make Sinner work a lot more on his service games, as the Italian struggled to find a countermeasure to the tactical shift in the match: “I kept doing the same thing over and over again”, Sinner stressed, and forehand unforced errors started to pile up to reach the burdensome number of 27 at the end of the match.

Sinner had the chance to find his way back into the second set while Alcaraz was serving at 3-5, but Carlos cancelled his break point with a laser backhand down the line that had the 15,000-strong crowd cheering on their feet.

The third set ran away very quickly from the Italian, who started touching repeatedly the back of his left leg around his knee. Sinner got broken again during the third game, and while going for a last-ditch attempt to recover a short volley by Alcaraz he tumbled to the ground slightly injuring his right elbow and arm. From there onwards it was just more mistakes by Sinner and a clinical execution by Alcaraz on how to take home a match.

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“It Feels Great’ – Novak Djokovic Marks Indian Wells Return With Milestone Win

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Novak Djokovic - Indian Wells 2024 (foto Ubitennis)

Novak Djokovic says he still has a ‘great feeling’ in Indian Wells after playing his first match at the event for five years. 

The world No.1 battled to a 6-2, 5-7, 6-3, win over Aleksandar Vukic in what was his first taste of competitive tennis since losing in the semi-finals of the Australian Open. It was a far from smooth encounter for Djokovic, who hit 23 winners and won 83% of his first service points. In the second set, he was broken twice with the second of those occurring when he was serving at 5-6. Nevertheless, he battled back in the decider to win. 

This year is the first time Djokovic has been able to play in the Masters 1000 event since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the 2020 tournament was cancelled, he was unable to play the next three editions due to restrictions placed on unvaccinated foreign visitors to America. Despite the absence, the five-time champion states that his love for the event is as strong as ever.

“It feels great to come back with the win. It’s been five years and the great feeling is still there. I enjoyed myself very much. Beautiful stadium. Great atmosphere.” Djokovic said during his press conference. 
“I was a bit nervous at the beginning. I haven’t played a match in more than five weeks. I thought the start was good. Then I think he upped his game.
“I probably lost a little bit of the momentum. We got into the third set, I thought the level of the tennis was pretty good in the third. Great points. He made me produce some really important points in games in order to prevail in this match. I’m glad that I was pushed, as well, which is important.”

Djokovic’s latest victory is his 400th in a Masters 1000 tournament. He is only the second player in history to have reached this milestone since the tournament category was introduced in 1990. The first to do so was Rafael Nadal who currently has 406 wins to his name. 

He could create more history in Indian Wells should the Serbian go on to claim the title this year. If he does, he would become the first man to have won it for a sixth time. Although Djokovic is refusing to get too far ahead of himself. 

“I would love to,” he said of trying to claim a sixth title. “Obviously there is still a long way to get to the title match, but it’s a good start.’
“I know I can always produce better tennis. Obviously very self-critical, and I think some extent it’s also important because then it puts you in the right mindset of wanting to work more and being engaged in the process of improving on a daily basis, or trying to perfect your game and right the wrongs that you’ve done in a previous match or previous practice session.
“So that’s what I’m going to keep doing and hopefully building my game as this tournament is played over 10 to 14 days, so it allows you to have the practice days also between matches, which then allows you to work on certain specifics in the game.”

Djokovic will play Italy’s Luca Nardi in the next round. 

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Carlos Alcaraz Brushes Aside Injury Doubts To Reach Indian Wells Third Round

Carlos Alcaraz is into the third round at Indian Wells after a three set win over Matteo Arnaldi.

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(@BNPPARIBASOPEN - Twitter)

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz overcame injury doubts to edge past Matteo Arnaldi 6-7(5) 6-0 6-1 at Indian Wells.

The world number two had to endure an aggressive opening set from the in-form Italian to reach the third round.

After a tight opening set, Alcaraz raced through the last two sets as he set up a third round showdown with Felix Auger-Aliassime.

The Spaniard had entered this match with injury doubts after retiring from his match with Thiago Monteiro in Rio De Janeiro.

However Alcaraz was very pleased with how his ankle held up as he moved on in California, “Honestly it surprised me. I felt great, moving normally without thinking about it,” Alcaraz told the ATP website.

“It was a really good match to realise that I am better than I thought. I think I played great tennis because of that. I had to change just a few things. I made a few mistakes in the first set… I had to put in more first serves in the second and third set, and I think that was a big key to improving my level a little bit, to be in the rallies — long rallies as well, to get the rhythm, and I’m really happy to get it at the end.

“But right now I’m getting better and feeling really, really well. But I think I have to get a good rhythm step by step. I think that’s the big difference between last year and this one. This [is a] really special tournament for me. I want to do it well. This is the first match playing high intensity and I didn’t know how it’s going respond, the ankle.

“I have to deal with it, but I didn’t deal with the nerves very well in the first set, moving differently, hitting the ball differently. My game is playing aggressive all the time. And try to stay calm and wait for my chances.

“When you get nervous, you don’t think about it. You don’t hit the ball as good as you want. You don’t move as good as you want. I think that’s the big difference.”

Alcaraz will hope for a good week this week as he defends the Indian Wells title as he aims to win a first title since Wimbledon this week.

Next for the Spaniard will be Felix Auger-Aliassime, who defeated Constant Lestienne in straight sets.

Auger-Aliassime currently leads the head-to-head 3-1 but Alcaraz won their last meeting in Indian Wells last year.

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