Novak Djokovic set for return to action in Dubai after missing Australian Open
World number one Novak Djokovic is set to make his return to action in Dubai in February after being prevented from competing at the Australian Open.
World number one Novak Djokovic is set to make his return to action in Dubai in February after being prevented from competing at the Australian Open.
Aussie, Aussie, Aussie!
The Australian Open men’s doubles final will be an all-Australian affair, after semi-final wins from Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis, and Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell. The unseeded finalists upset the third and second seeds, respectively, on Thursday in Melbourne.
Kyrgios and Kokkinakis delighted a packed Rod Laver Arena by knocking off Horacio Zeballos and Marcel Granollers, 7-6(4), 6-4. Playing at the same time on Margaret Court Arena, their compatriots upset 2020 AO champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury 6-3, 7-6(9).
In a charged atmosphere in Laver, Kyrgios and Kokkinakis—neither of whom had previously been beyond the third round in doubles at a Slam—delighted a packed crowd with a victory full of substance and style.
“I’ve played a lot of singles matches around the globe with amazing atmospheres,” Kyrgios reflected in the on-court interview. “This week with Thanasi, playing in front of you, nothing beats this. This is insane.”
There were no break points and just one deuce in the opening set. A classy behind-the-back stab from Granollers helped drag the second seeds level from 40/0 on the Kyrgios serve, but the Aussies held firm.
A Kyrgios tweener backfired on set point at 6/4 in the tie-break, but a big serve from the crowd favourite put the hammer down for the set.
With the atmosphere nearing fever pitch, the Aussies won the first seven points of the second stanza to create a 0/40 opening on the Granollers serve. The third seeds got back to deuce, but back-to-back Kokkinakis winners—one off each baseline wing—produced the match’s first break of serve.
The third seeds clawed back from 4-1 to 4-4 in the set, but Granollers was broken again to concede the match. It was bedlam when a Kokkinakis topspin lob dropped in, with Kyrgios sprinting to his partner and the pair dropping to the court in celebration.
“When we come out here, it’s all about the crowd, the atmosphere,” Kokkinakis added. “That gets us going. We worry about the tennis second. Playing in front of you guys brings the best out of us, honestly. I don’t know if we’d have this result anywhere else. It’s sick.”
The duo have gone through the first, 15th, sixth and third seeds en route to the title round, while Ebden-Purcell have dismissed the fourth, 13th, 10th and second seeds.
The Margaret Court Arena contest was a rematch of the 2021 US Open quarter-finals, where eventual champions Ram and Salisbury saved four match points and advanced by the slimmest possible margin, 7-6(7), 6-7(6), 7-6(10).
“I didn’t sleep that well the next couple weeks after that, so I’m just glad we got our revenge,” Ebden said post-match. “We thought, ‘It’s our home Slam, our court. We’re Australians.’ And the crowd made a difference yesterday and today… To go through to the finals here is a dream.”
There were no breaks of serve in their US Open meeting, but Ebden-Purcell broke twice in the opening set on Thursday, taking the third and ninth games on break-point double faults from Ram, then Salisbury. There were no break chances for either side in the second, with all the drama saved for the tie-break.
Finishing just before their compatriots in Laver, the Aussies saved four set points and clinched victory on their second match point in the 11-9 tie-break.
“It was a strange one seeing that we broke them in the third game today,” added Purcell. “They definitely lifted their level in the second set, but credit to us. We hung in there in the end. I helped Matty out a little bit when I needed to, and he helped me out when he needed to, and we got through.”
It’s the 23-year-old Purcell’s second career major doubles final. He reached the 2020 Australian Open final alongside Aussie Luke Saville, before losing to Ram and Salisbury. Ebden, 34, had not been beyond the quarter-finals in 29 previous men’s doubles major appearances. He has gone all the way in mixed doubles, winning the 2013 AO title with compatriot Jarmila Gajdosova and reaching the final last year in Australia.
One year ago, the partners were on opposite sides of the net in the Australian Open second round, where Ebden and John-Patrick Smith won an all-Aussie match against Purcell and Saville.
The men’s doubles title match is set for Saturday night in Melbourne, giving both teams a day off for their final preparations.
Australian Open semi-final foes Matteo Berrettini and Rafael Nadal have clashed before. Coincidentally, that match, a straight-sets victory for Nadal at the 2019 US Open, also came in a major semi-final. But according to former World No. 4 Brad Gilbert, plenty has changed since then.
“I think at that point, it was kind of a big surprise for Berrettini to have been there. Now he’s a different guy,” Gilbert told ATPTour.com.. “This is his fourth straight Slam in the quarter-finals, he’s been to a final and he’s a much more confident player.”
During his breakthrough run at Flushing Meadows in 2019, Berrettini was the No. 25 player in the ATP Rankings. He had only cracked the Top 100 18 months earlier.
Now, the 25-year-old is a Top 10 powerhouse who has competed in the Nitto ATP Finals twice and reached his first major final at Wimbledon last year. On the other hand, Nadal is playing just his second tournament since August of last year due to a foot injury.
Will the Italian be able to spring the upset and halt Nadal’s pursuit of a record-breaking 21st Grand Slam title?
Gilbert, who has coached the likes of Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick, believes Nadal has not played a server like Berrettini through five rounds. In the quarter-finals, the Spaniard battled past Denis Shapovalov in five sets.
“I thought he played very solid to get to the quarters and he was literally seven minutes from beating Denis 3, 4 and 3. He missed an easy pass at 3-all 15/40, a forehand up the line that he makes 99 out of 100 [times],” Gilbert said. “If he breaks there, that match is not complicated and he’s going into the semis totally unscathed. How does he recover physically?”
Nadal admitted to dealing with stomach issues during his win against the Canadian, which was played in the gruelling Melbourne heat. But it is important to note Berrettini and Nadal played their quarter-final on Tuesday, giving them both two days off.
“When [Rafa] had to, he did what he needed to do. It was probably the best thing I’ve ever seen Rafa do,” Gilbert said. “You don’t ever have to see Rafa manage himself and that was a beautiful thing to see, him managing himself through a little bit of a heat issue.
“He’s fitter than a fiddle, but it can happen. Normally when it happens, if you’re not prepared for it, you can have trouble. But he had to manage himself.”
Although Gilbert said that Shapovalov’s highs might even be higher than Berrettini’s, he added the Italian does not dip as often and plays more of a “big-man’s game” with his massive serve and huge forehand.
“His game is all based on surf and turf. That’s what wins it for him. If he’s going to win, he’s bombing serves, bombing first-ball forehands, taking control,” Gilbert said. “If Rafa gets on offence and can make him work, it’s trouble. That’s what he did at the US Open, he broke down the backhand. But if that guy is serving the way he can serve, he serves big. But you don’t know how much energy he’s expended.”
Berrettini also needed five sets in the quarter-finals, in which he clawed past Frenchman Gael Monfils. He was also extended to a fourth set in his first two matches and a fifth-set tie-break in the third round against reigning Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion Carlos Alcaraz.
Is the easy answer that Nadal will immediately try to attack the Italian’s backhand and grind him down from there? Gilbert said it is not necessarily that easy.
“When a guy has a monster forehand, you want to be able to take him hard and fast to the forehand because he’s always looking to be on the backhand side of the court hitting forehands,” Gilbert said. “The ultimate goal is to be able to take him hard and fast to the forehand to open up more space to the backhand.”
Who will advance to the final to face Daniil Medvedev or Stefanos Tsitsipas? Gilbert is hoping for a five-setter, and he feels Nadal is a “one-point favourite”.
Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas could not have taken more different paths through their respective Australian Open quarter-final. Medvedev had to claw back from two sets down to defeat Felix Auger-Aliassime, while Tsitsipas cruised past Jannik Sinner in straight sets.
But according to former World No. 4 Brad Gilbert, it is important to keep in mind that Medvedev plays a completely different game than Sinner.
“It’s a totally different matchup. Tsitsipas will try to come forward, Medvedev will defend. Each one of these matches, it’s a completely different matchup,” Gilbert told ATPTour.com. “And when it’s a different matchup, sometimes you act differently. You change tactics, you have to do things differently.
“If Tsitsipas plays as well as he did against Sinner, he’s going to have a great shot. But it’s a different type of player, different type of rhythm. Medvedev is a three-and-a-half point favourite.”
Medvedev leads the pair’s ATP Head2Head series 6-2, including victories in their first five tour-level meetings. But compared to last year’s Australian Open semi-finals, in which Medvedev beat Tsitsipas in straight sets, the circumstances are different.
In 2021, Tsitsipas entered their clash on the back of a gruelling five-setter against Rafael Nadal, while Medvedev won his quarter-final against Andrey Rublev in straight sets.
“[It is] a completely different situation. Medvedev came in cruising in the semi and Tsitsipas won a battle against Rafa,” Gilbert said. “Fast forward a year, Medvedev won a battle and Tsitsipas rolled, so that script flipped.”
The Tsitsipas-Sinner showdown was a meeting between two offensive-minded players who try to get on top of the point. Sinner stays on top of the baseline and tries to blast through his opponents. Medvedev, however, brings a different skillset to the court.
“You’re talking about a guy who plays the best defence on Tour. Sinner doesn’t play nearly as good on defence as Medvedev,” Gilbert said. “[Tsitsipas] didn’t have to press and was hitting beautifully. But maybe all of a sudden that same ball that was getting by Sinner might not get by Medvedev and then maybe he presses and misses. Those are the variables that are different.”
Medvedev is two wins from a historic achievement. No man in the Open Era has won his first major title and then claimed his second in the next Grand Slam. The Russian, who triumphed at last year’s US Open, is trying to do just that. Nadal, who is playing Matteo Berrettini in the other semi-final, is chasing a record-breaking 21st major trophy.
“Everybody gets ahead thinking about it. When you’re in these guys’ shoes, all you’re thinking about is the opponent you’re playing. That’s it,” Gilbert said. “And then when you play the next opponent, you figure out the gameplan for that opponent. That’s what the coach is trying to do, keep it simple, focus on Tsitsipas and that’s it, whether you’re the favourite or not. That’s the matchup.”
Tsitsipas’ first major breakthrough came at the Australian Open in 2019, when he made the last four just months after lifting the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals trophy. This is now the third straight year he has made it this far at Melbourne Park.
“He plays better on this court than anywhere else. It’s the third straight year he’s in the semis. I think what’s going to be crucial for him are his return of serve, because I thought the two best areas of his game against Sinner were his return and backhand,” Gilbert said. “They were on point, and I think that will be crucial for him again against Medvedev.”
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If Daniil Medvedev, on the verge of elimination, was looking for inspiration, he chose well.
The World No. 2 was facing a match point in the fourth set of his Australian Open quarter-final against upset-minded Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime, his back squarely against the wall. The Russian says it was then that he summoned the mindset of a certain 20-time major titlist, a player who once erased two championship points to prevail at Wimbledon: What would Novak Djokovic do?
“I have to take what I can from the best,” said Medvedev, who would rally from a two-sets-to-love deficit for just the second time in his career, saving a match point in the process, to win, 6-7(4), 3-6, 7-6(2), 7-5, 6-4, in four hours and 41 minutes. “Just be like Novak. Show him that you are better.”
Watch Medvedev QF Highlights:
The escape act means that Medvedev, 25, will face Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-finals for the second straight year, having topped the Greek star in the last four in 2021, 6-4, 6-2, 7-5. He’s now 6-2 against Tsitsipas, though his opponent has claimed two of their past three encounters, including a quarter-final clash last year at Roland Garros.
“I’m going to try to recover as well as possible, to be ready to play against Stefanos, because he’s a great player,” said Medvedev. “I need to be at my best to beat him.”
Tsitsipas had an easier go of it in his quarter-final, scoring a straight-sets, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 decision over 11th seed Jannik Sinner in just over two hours. The man whose first major breakthrough came at this same event in 2019, when the then-20-year-old stunned Roger Federer and became the youngest Slam semi-finalist in a dozen years, somehow always finds a way to ramp it up in the second week in Melbourne Park.
“I feel like I’m in the zone,” said Tsitspias, now 23. “I have no plans of getting out of it. It’s part of my game.”
Watch Tsitsipas QF Highlights:
Despite his Astaire-like performance this week in Melbourne, he says he’s keeping it all in perspective.
“When you’re dancing and when you’re doing well, you tend to glorify yourself, as if you are untouchable,” said the fourth seed. “It is important in that process to remain on the ground and to remind yourself that you are a human being who is aiming for something great, and you’re headed towards that direction and you’re doing everything possible in order to achieve that greatness.”
The Medvedev-Tsitsipas head-to-head can get testy at times. In fact, on the very first occasion the Laver Cup teammates faced off, at the ATP Masters 1000 Miami Open presented by Itau in 2018, heated words were exchanged both during and after the match (Medvedev would claim the first-round affair, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.).
“It’s fine,” said Tsitspias of the burgeoning rivalry. “We haven’t really spoken in the past couple of months, but our relationship is competitors on the court and kind of fighting for the same dream.”
Both players are dreaming big. Medvedev, the 2021 US Open champion, is attempting to become the first man in the Open Era to win his second major title in his next Grand Slam appearance. Tsitsipas, meanwhile, continues to chase his first Grand Slam title, having infamously surrendered a two-sets-to-love advantage against Djokovic in the Roland Garros final last year.
Rafael Nadal committed 11 double faults against Denis Shapovalov in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open, more than he had in any previous match of his ATP Tour career. But the Spaniard and his team were unperturbed by a stat that they see more as the collateral effect of Rafa’s plan for 2022: to serve faster on his second serve.
The numbers show that the initiative is working. At Roland Garros in 2021, his most recent Grand Slam tournament before this year’s Australian Open, Rafa had an average serve speed of 180 kilometres per hour on his first serve and 150km/h on his second serve. So far, in the year’s first major, where he has won five matches en route to the semi-finals, he has produced an average of 187km/h on his first delivery and 162km/h on his second.
These statistics put him among the greatest servers in our sport. In fact, the 2009 Australian Open champion now has a greater average speed on his second serve over these two weeks than Matteo Berrettini (161km/h), who he will meet in the semis on Friday, Russian Daniil Medvedev (156km/h) and Stefanos Tsitsipas (155km/h).
“[Rafa] is realising how many free points he’s getting. The other day I was talking to him about it before his match against [Adrian] Mannarino. He served 16 aces and six doubles,” said one of Nadal’s coaches, former World No. 1 Carlos Moya. “I told him that I would far prefer that to three aces and no double faults. Because at the end of the day you want the points to be shorter, you want to be aggressive. And the first opportunity to do that is the serve.”
He is taking a risk on both serves in order to win service games more easily, put more pressure on the returner and to save as much energy as possible on court. This is the current philosophy for Nadal, who on Friday will play the 90th match of his career at the Australian Open. It is a philosophy that is delivering results.
Nadal’s Serve In 2022 (including Melbourne Summer Set)
| Aces | 52 |
| Average 1st-Serve Speed | 188km/h |
| Average 2nd-Serve Speed | 164km/h |
| 1st-Serve Pts Won | 79% |
| 2nd-Serve Pts Won | 54% |
“I think that yesterday [against Denis Shapovalov] was a clear statement of that intention, and that’s why the serve was an essential part of winning the match,” added Moya, who has been coaching Nadal since 2016. “At 35 years of age you have to increasingly move towards that type of match. Yesterday’s match is a statement of intent that he is willing to take risks, to accept that risk-reward ratio. So far, the benefits have been very high.”
Nadal has not been shy about taking risks in Melbourne, even in high-pressure situations. For example, the first of the four set points he faced in the tie-break against Mannarino in the last sixteen, he saved with a 169km/h second serve that forced the Frenchman into a mistake. Until that point, Rafa had only produced one faster second serve172km/h at the start of the match.
Against Shapovalov, although he served a significant number of double faults, Nadal continued to take risks. In fact, against the 22-year-old Canadian, apart from winning his first 12 service games without facing a break point, he produced his highest average service speed this fortnight in Australia – 190km/h on his first and 165km/h on his second.
Nadal’s Avg Serve Speed At The 2022 Australian Open
| Opponent | Round | 1st Serve | 2nd Serve |
| Marcos Giron | 1st | 188km/h | 165km/h |
| Yannick Hanfmann | 2nd | 188km/h | 161km/h |
| Karen Khachanov | 3rd | 185km/h | 158km/h |
| Adrian Mannarino | 4th | 187km/h | 165km/h |
| Denis Shapovalov | QF | 190km/h | 165km/h |
Just five years ago in Melbourne, Nadal’s goal in his first Grand Slam with Moya as one of his coaches was to go from a 140km/h average to 150km/h for his second serve. The progress since then has been remarkable. “Our first goal was to reach 150km/h in 2017, when he was at 135 to 140. But this tournament has shown that his average is now over 160,” said Moya.
Nadal’s improvement with this strategy — having changed his technique three years ago, also in Australia — is a reflection of his desire to keep winning despite his age, and his dream of claiming a 21st Grand Slam title is looking increasingly achievable.
Did You Know?
Nadal has only been broken four times in five matches at this year’s Australian Open (78/82, 95% hold rate).
Felix Auger-Aliassime is disappointed, but undeterred.
The Canadian star let slip a two-set lead — including a match point in the fourth set — against Daniil Medvedev in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open. But in the early hours of Thursday morning in Melbourne, the 21-year-old Felix showed maturity far beyond his years.
“I can go back and think I wish I made different choices, or I wish Daniil didn’t play as good in certain moments. But, yeah, it was a good effort,” Auger-Aliassime said. “At the end of the day, I can’t regret the effort that I put, and the chances I gave myself. I like to look at it in a positive way.
“Of course I would have loved to win. I love to win every time. It sucks to lose in the end, but that’s life. I just need to accept it.”
The loss will sting, as it is the second consecutive year Auger-Aliassime has lost from two sets up at the season’s first major. But there were plenty of positives to take from the performance. It was a top effort from the World No. 9 to put his second-seeded opponent on the brink of defeat.
“I always believed I could produce what I did tonight. I showed it, but definitely it’s the difference between knowing that you have this inside of you and actually showing up and doing it and being close [to] winning,” Auger-Aliassime said. “But of course it’s good, I mean, it’s good for myself. It’s a world of competition, so at the end of the day I think it’s a good message that I send to my fellow players, the people I’m competing with.
“I’m ready to test myself with the best, and I have proved it now time after time.”
What made the difference in the end? As Medvedev noted in his press conference, he faced match point, so even a missed first serve could have changed the outcome, and Felix could have been into his second consecutive major semi-final.
But Medvedev was cool under pressure throughout the final three sets. In the decider, the Russian saved all six break points he faced and converted his one opportunity.
“We both didn’t want to give up. It’s no surprise he’s where he is now. He fights, tries to find solutions. He plays well when he needs to. I think that’s the big difference, we saw the players playing good this week, they play well when it matters,” Auger-Aliassime said. “I think he was just a little bit more clutch than me. A little bit more solid at times. [That] comes with experience as well, I think.”
Auger-Aliassime added that he is keen to put himself in this position again with the belief that in the future he will be able to “cross the line”. But for now, the Canadian plans to reflect on his positive start to the season and use the momentum he has earned in the weeks and months ahead.
“I wish I could go back and change it, but I can’t. So I have accepted it already. It is what it is. I look at it in a very positive way. So far I played two tournaments this year. I showed some good level again today,” Auger-Aliassime. “It’s unfortunate I couldn’t win, but it was a good match. I showed good things. I’m going to leave Australia with my head held high, and I’m going to go into the rest of the season knowing that I can play well, I can play well against the best players in the world.”
Watch some of the best shots as Stefanos Tsitsipas beats Jannik Sinner 6-3 6-4 6-2 to reach the semi-finals of the Australian Open.
