https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/28/sport/jannik-sinner-daniil-medvedev-2024-aust... Jannik Sinner overcame a two-set deficit to defeat Russia’s Daniil Medvedev
3-6 3-6 6-4 6-4 6-3 in a thrilling five-set final and claim the men’s Australian Open title on Sunday,
becoming the first Italian man to win a grand slam since 1976.
The 22-year-old’s remarkable comeback capped off a special tournament for Sinner, one in which he had defeated world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the semifinals on route to his first-ever grand slam final and ended with his maiden major title.
Such drama provided a fitting finale for a tournament which has featured an incredible 35 five-set thrillers, equaling the Open Era record for any grand slam, as Medvedev raced to a two-set lead, initially heaping pressure on the young Italian who was left defending from every corner of the court in the wake of the No. 3 seed’s precise, aggressive approach.
TOPSHOT - Fans of Italy's Jannik Sinner, dressed as carrots, gestures during his men's singles match against France's Alexandre Muller on day two of the Roland-Garros Open tennis tournament at the Court Philippe-Chatrier in Paris on May 29, 2023. (Photo by Emmanuel DUNAND / AFP) (Photo by EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP via Getty Images)
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But, as the match went on, Sinner fought back, readjusted his own tactics and began outlasting his opponent during longer rallies. Suddenly, he had won the third set, breaking Medvedev for the first time as the Russian served to stay in the set and the tide began to shift.
That momentum carried Sinner through the fourth and fifth sets as he overturned the deficit and became the youngest male player to win the Australian Open since 2008, as well as just the third Italian man to ever win a grand slam.
For Medvedev, it was a cruel echo of the 2022 Australian Open final he lost to Rafael Nadal when he had once again let a two-set lead slip. Following his defeat against Sinner, the 27-year-old made some unwanted history by becoming the first player in the Open Era to lose multiple grand slam finals in such fashion.
It had been a long, gruelling route for him to even reach the final, playing in three five-set epics and spending almost 21 hours out on the court before Sunday’s clash with Sinner and, as the match crept into its closing stages, that fatigue began to show.
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