Right so now I get onto my final post of the 2017 Australian Open, which will cover the much anticipated men's final, which was between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, as the two titans of the game faced each other for the first time in a major final for six years. But did it live up to expectations???? And who won???? Well let's find out....
THE FINAL
Well...the final itself promised much and boy, did it deliver on its promise as this was a terrific match that really reignited the spark on these two great rivals as they played some superb tennis for an enthralled, not to mention jam packed Rod Laver arean crowd.
As for how the match progressed in the 1st set, Rog made the first move and broke Rafa and went on to serve out for the first set, which he did with confidence. In the 2nd set however, Roger suddenly came off his game, which let Rafa back into the match, who broke his old rival's serve and he then went on to level the match at a set apiece. And just when you thought that Rafa had the momentum on his side, Roger stepped it up and play some inspired tennis to force Rafa down a double break that saw Rog speed to a two sets to one lead. However in the 4th set, Rafa proved he still wasn't done as he fought back and broke Roger not once but twice, although Rog did break back once, it didn't stop Rafa from serving it out two level the match yet again as play went to a 5th set.
And in the 5th set, the crowd were treated to an absolutely thrilling decider as both men battled and brought out the best in each other, however Rafa drew first blood as he broke Roger to go ahead 2-0 and from here it looked certain that Rafa was in the driving seat. However as Rafa served to go 4-2 up at 3-2, Roger battled his way back on serve as he broke Rafa again to level 3-3 and he soon went on to hold serve and break Rafa's serve again to go 5-3 up. And with Roger serving for the match, he played a very tense and thrilling game with Rafa that saw the Spaniard force a break back point. However in the end, Roger managed to deny his old rival, just this once as he successfully went on to serve out the match and with it, claim his 1st grand slam title in 5 years and his 5th Australian open title with an incredible and memorable 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 victory.
THOUGHTS
Well as I said before, there weren't many that would have predicted this being the final but by heck I'm sure there are also plenty that were glad that it was the final they got, as this was a tremendous contest by both men, who once again reminded us what a truly amazing rivalry they have with one another. And the quality and intensity of the match was so high that it saw the Rod Laver arena crowd generate more noise than we've heard from them in many years.
And for Roger there is no doubt this will rank as one of the most significant and special wins in his career, not to mention one that will most likely see his record of 18 grand slam titles probably never be bettered by anyone. And given the form that Roger has shown in this tournament its safe to say that he's not finished winning major titles yet in 2017 as I wouldn't be surprised if there was a Wimbledon title this year with his name on it also.
Its also incredible to think that Roger would have won a grand slam in his comeback so soon after a 6 month injury lay-off, nursing an injured knee and ranked 17 in the world, it seemed very unlikely he would have made it past say the 4th round or the quarter finals. But it shows yet again that this man continues to defy any ranking, or any player and when he's on song, there are few around that can actually beat him. And on the basis of this tournament I think its safe to say that Roger is the greatest player of all time and with 18 majors, no one can argue with that.
As for Rafa, well his loss will no doubt be a disappointment for him especially given that he was a break up in the 5th set at the start but then let it slip, which eventually cost him the match. However Rafa can still take many positives from the tournament and it sees that he too has got his mojo back now and he must now surely be a big favourite once again for the French Open where he will go for an unprecedented 10th title.
And this tournament will also send out a real message to the other two members of the "big four" in Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic, who both suffered early exits at the event and it will be interesting to see just how they respond as a result, particularly Andy as he is current World No.1.
And with Novak's early exit in Melbourne, this will for now keep Andy at the top of the rankings where he should stay at for the time being well into the clay court season.
However the real question from here is, can Andy continue to play the level of tennis that comes with his ranking or will he be in danger of being outgunned by his main rivals? Well I guess only time will tell on that one, but I think Andy's early exit in Melbourne was more the result of the sheer fatigue he must have been feeling after his exhaustive efforts last year in getting to No.1 rather than a sudden slump in form.
And then there is the question of Novak and where will his game be at in the forthcoming months as his early 2nd round exit in Melbourne raised some real questions over his current form again. Not only that Novak will also have a lot of points to defend going into the American hard court swing as he is the defending champion at Indian Wells and Miami and also the clay court season where he is the champion at Madrid and Roland Garros. So its all up in the air again regarding the world's top two players because Roger and Rafa, on the evidence of their efforts in Australia, are far from done and look hungry again to add to their major totals.
SIGN OFF
Right so that is it for now and that's another Australian open tournament over for another year and what an event it has been, especially on the men's side as it has seen some tremendous matches and some incredible upsets. And all it remains for me to say is congrats to Roger for winning his record breaking 18th grand slam title and that 2017 really has gotten to a very interesting start so far in the tennis world and I'm looking forward to watching it unfold.
So till the next one, its bye for now!
