Novak Djokovic claimed a record seventh Australian Open crown on Sunday as he demolished Rafael Nadal 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 in his most dominant Grand Slam win in his long rivalry with the Spaniard.
The peerless Serb broke Nadal five times at a stunned Rod Laver Arena while conceding only a single break point to clinch his 15th Grand Slam title and third in succession after winning Wimbledon and the US Open.
The pair’s 53rd Tour clash and eighth in a major final was not the marathon battle it was expected to be, as top seed Djokovic bulldozed through the first two sets with machine-like precision and wrapped up the match in just over two hours.
Sealing the win on the second championship point when a desperate Nadal fired a backhand long, Djokovic kneeled on the blue hardcourt and shook his fists at the sky, letting out a roar of triumph.
“I am just trying to contemplate on the journey in the last 12 months,” Djokovic said beaming at the trophy ceremony. “Like Rafa, I had surgery exactly 12 months ago, and to be standing now here in front of you today and managing to win this title and managing to win three out of four Slams is amazing. I am speechless.”
Djokovic said a fast start had always been his plan. “(It was) exactly what I intended to do, to step out and bring on the intensity because I knew there would be intensity waiting for me on the other side.”
The Spaniard had not lost a set and had not had his service broken since the third set of his first round match but that streak ended in a flash as the Serb came sprinting out of the blocks. “I definitely needed a good start, we had both been playing well coming into the match,” said Djokovic. “I knew I had a good chance if could dictate the play.”
With his seventh crown at Melbourne Park, Djokovic moved ahead of Pete Sampras as third on the men's all-time list of most Grand Slam titles (15) and probably more poignantly just two behind Nadal.
Roger Federer is still out in front with 20 and the debate on the sport’s greatest player has mostly centred around the Swiss master and the Spaniard.
But Djokovic has most certainly thrown his hat into that ring and the mark remains a motivation for him.
“Of course, it motivates me,” said Djokovic, who earlier posed with his trophy for ‘the most beautiful and the most expensive’ photograph of the night with four Australian tennis greats including Rod Laver and Roy Emerson.
“Playing Grand Slams, biggest ATP events, is my utmost priority in this season and in seasons to come. How many seasons are to come? I don’t know. I'm not trying to think too much in advance.
“I do want to definitely focus myself on continuing to improve my game and maintaining the overall well-being that I have mental, physical, emotional, so I would be able to compete at such a high level for the years to come, and have a shot at eventually getting closer to Roger’s record. It’s still far.”
However, the biggest challenge for Djokovic this year will come at the French Open once again from Nadal, where the 32-year-old has won a record 11 titles.
“I have to work on my game, my claycourt game, a bit more, more specifically than I have in the last season,” said Djokovic. “I am already playing better. But, I mean, clay specifically in order to have a chance and shot at the title. The ultimate challenge there is to win against Nadal.”
Blitzed from the start, Nadal could only congratulate an opponent that condemned him to his worst Grand Slam defeat in their long rivalry.
“It has been very emotional two weeks. Even if tonight was not my best, I had somebody that played much better,” said the 32-year-old. “I am going to keep fighting hard, going to keep working hard to be a better player every time, for the good things in life.”
It was a greater humbling than even the quarter finals of the 2015 French Open, when Djokovic thrashed Nadal 7-5, 6-3, 6-1 to end the Spaniard’s six-year winning streak at his favourite claycourt tournament.
