2024-03-22 14:31:52
The 22-year-old Italian, fourth seed in the tournament and executioner of world number one, Novak Djokovic, in the semifinals, He became the first tennis player from his country to win the Aus Opena tournament dominated by the “Big Three” (Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal) since the consecration of the Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka in 2014.
Medvedev, third seed, failed in his third attempt to win the first Grand Slam of the year, something that had already happened to him in the 2021 finals against Djokovic and in 2022 against Nadal.
The Muscovite remains with a big tournament under his belt (US Open 2021) and now five lost definitions: three in Melbourne and another two in New York.
«Thanks to my team. To all those who are in the box, to those who are following the tournament from home, to those who work with me. We try to improve every day and even during the tournament. We try to be stronger and understand the situation a little better. It’s not easy, I’m still a little young, but I thank everyone,” declared the player from the town of San Cándido, after starring in the best performance of his career.
La final en Melbourne It brought together the two tennis players with the best presence since since the beginning of the 2023 season, no one has won more matches than Medvedev and Sinner on the circuit, an inertia that was maintained in Australia against strong rivals.
After becoming the first player capable of beating Djokovic in Melbourne since 2018, Sinner faced his first final in a “major” ready to make history against an opponent who had the best break record with 33 breaks in the entire tournament.
Holding serve on his first serve was a demonstration of confidence but not enough for the match to begin to get complicated due to the Russian, solid from the back of the Australian court.
The 22-year-old Italian tennis player is the fourth favorite in the tournament and executioner of the world number one. Photo: X Sinner
With determination and a better pace of play, Medvedev closed the first set and quickly went 5-1 in the second, which seemed a trend towards his denied victory in the largest tournament in Oceania.
However, The reaction at the end of the second set gave Sinner the necessary fuel to face the rest of the match with a strong mentalitydetermined to compete with the soul until the last point.
Thus, the Italian adjusted his game and demanded of his rival with exchanges that exceeded 30 blows. Sinner forced a fourth moto as night fell in Melbourne and the ghosts rose in the Russian.
With the memory of the epic final delivered in 2022 against Nadal, after also closing the first two sets, Medvedev went to his bench with the certainty of having a revived opponent convinced of being able to achieve the epic.
Sinner tightened his forehand the longer the game went on and the match with a feeling of suspense that psychologically demolished the Muscovite, whose path to the final demanded greater physical effort than the Italian.
The young man won the duel in a match that lasted more than three hours and established his performance at the Aus Open. Photo: X Sinner
In the fifth sleeve, when the legs were already heavy, Sinner’s youth was decisive and also his lucidity to land accurate blows in the most tense moments of the final. Without flaws in his serve, Sinner did not deliver a single serve in the last three rounds and was finally able to celebrate the Australian Open, which he dedicated to his parents.
«I wish everyone could have parents like mine, who let me choose what to do when I was younger. I played other sports and they never put me under pressure. I wish this freedom were possible for all children, I feel very grateful to my parents,” he acknowledged.
The player from Bolzano became the third Italian man to win a Grand Slam singles tournament after Nicola Pietrangeli (Roland Garros 1959-60) and Adriano Panatta (Roland Garros 1976).