The Serbian wins his fourth title in a row in London and the 21st ‘Grand Slam’
MADRID, 10 (EUROPA PRESS)
The Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic defeated the Australian Nick Kyrgios (4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(3)) in the final of the Wimbledon tournament on Sunday, the third ‘Grand Slam’ of the season, in an intense match that Belgrade won to win its fourth title in a row and seventh overall in London.
The favorite complied on English grass against a Kyrgios who was contesting his first final of a ‘big’, to add his 21st ‘Grand Slam’, beating Roger Federer and one of Rafa Nadal in the race of the best in history. The final was a duel of contrasts that left no one indifferent. Djokovic had to bring out the best version of himself against a rival that he had not been able to overcome to date, with two defeats in Indian Wells and Acapulco, both in 2017.
Kyrgios, despite not playing the semifinal due to the resignation of Spaniard Rafa Nadal due to injury, put the former world number one on the ropes in the first round. The Australian, intractable on serve, was comfortable on the century-old ‘Centre Court’, surprising a hesitant Djokovic on the first point of the match with a double fault.
The Serbian, more serious in his style than his rival, yielded in the fifth game (2-3) to give an advantage to the 13th in the ATP ranking, who confirmed the break to consider the only ‘break’ as good and go ahead on the scoreboard with the first set (4-6).
Djokovic rediscovered his best version after the initial setback and increased the pace to neutralize the Australian’s serving festival. His aggressiveness to the rest of him allowed him to return a blank ‘break’ to take the sleeve without opposition and many unforced errors from his rival.
Equality prevailed in the third round, but the first seed completely unhinged the histrionic Kyrgios by moving him to the edge of the track. Still, the Aussie held his ground, putting the title favorite in difficulty thanks to an impressive 18 aces from him. The Serbian did not enter Nick’s usual show, with his complaints to the chair umpire between games, to overcome by the minimum.
With the Cathedral asking for more, Kyrgios put the whining and screaming behind him in the opening games of the fourth set to bring out his best tennis. Thus, raising integers with his serve and his comfort at the net, he arrived with maximum equality at the ‘tie break’.
The Australian died on the shore in that tiebreak, paying the pressure against a more accurate Djokovic in the decisive moment. The Serbian walked straight towards his rebirth on the London grass, which he chewed as usual, after his seventh title. Moment of enjoyment, to re-add to the list of ‘greats’, knowing that his participation in the US Open is in doubt for not being vaccinated against the coronavirus.
The one from Belgrade, who began 2022 with the nightmare and deportation in Australia, savors the glory again, truncated by Nadal at Roland Garros last month. Wimbledon returns the best Djokovic, with his seventh title, to one of the record of a Federer whom he surpasses in the ‘Grand Slam’ while cutting with the Spanish.