On Sunday morning, Novak Djokovic won the Adelaide International, his 92nd tour-level triumph, to earn his first singles championship of the year. He did it by holding off American Sebastian Korda on the final point.
The Serb, who was a strong favourite going into the Australian Open this month, didn’t, however, have it all his own way. In a titanic match that lasted more than three hours, he was required to fight back from the verge of defeat in the second set to eventually secure the victory by 6-7(8), 7-6(3), and 6-4.
Djokovic lauded Korda’s performance from the baseline after the semifinal victory over Daniil Medvedev, possibly feeling the effects of a left leg ailment that affected him on Saturday. The American’s game plan appeared to be tailored to test the Serb’s agility from a distance.
In fact, at 5-6 in the second set, Korda’s gutsy performance almost gave him the biggest win of his career. He got a 30- to 40-foot lead, but he couldn’t beat Djokovic. In the end, Djokovic won a tiebreaker and moved on to the third and final set.
The Americans’ resistance was broken in the decisive set when Djokovic broke Korda’s serve at 5-4.With momentum on his side, he survived any additional attempts at a comeback.
“Amazing effort today, amazing tournament,” he concluded.
He said, addressing his rival, “I’d probably argue that you were closer to victory today than I was.”
“One or two shots, one or two points, decided it.” You’ve had bad luck today, but you have a bright future ahead of you. Just keep playing; you’re a fantastic player. Good work.
Djokovic’s victory comes one year after his contentious deportation by Australian immigration authorities for failing to comply with COVID-19 vaccination rules that were in place at the time. The success also came on the eve of the Australian Open, an event at which he is a nine-time champion.
He said that he was unsure of the public’s response when the Serb returned to Australia, but Djokovic expressed his gratitude for how well he was received.
“This week has been incredible, and you all have added to its significance.” “It’s obviously a gift for me to be standing here,” he said.
“To be able to get my hands on the trophy, I gave it everything today and during the entire week.”
“Thank you so much to everyone for coming out to every single match,” the athlete said. “The support that I’ve been getting in the past ten days is something that I don’t believe I’ve experienced too often in my life.”
With 92 men’s singles titles in the Open era, Djokovic now shares the record with Rafael Nadal, who he used to play against. Only Ivan Lendl (94), Roger Federer (103), and Jimmy Connors (109), who all won more than 92 titles, are ahead of them.
If he wins the Australian Open for the tenth time this month, he will have 22 Grand Slam victories, one more than Nadal.
