By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday February 4, 2020

 

Novak Djokovic bolstered his reputation as a big-game baller on Sunday night in Melbourne.

Photo Source: Mark Peterson/Corleve

History made! On Sunday Novak Djokovic defeated Dominic Thiem in five sets to claim his record eighth Australian Open title. This final won’t go down a one of the greatest finals on record, but my initial take is that it was more classic than many give it credit for. It certainly did contain a lot of ingredients that make a classic. It was memorable, dramatic, feverish and a nail biter to the finish.

Strap in, and enjoy 50 takes garnered from a rewatch.

1. The first six games produced by Novak Djokovic in this final were pure, unrelenting mastery. Absolute clinic, and tennis purists that take the time to explore the nuance of what makes Djokovician tennis so jaw-dropping, will have really had their fun with the first half of the opening set. “How to start a Grand Slam final,” by Novak Djokovic.

2. A comment by Tennis Channel’s Paul Annacone on Novak Djokovic’s return game during the first set: “You miss your target on your serve by six inches against Novak, and there is almost zero percent chance that ball is not coming back with interest, I don’t care how hard you hit it,” he says.

**Note** I watched the replay of the final on Tennis Channel’s streaming service. I thoroughly enjoyed how Annacone, Martina Navratilova and Ted Robinson did not seem to know that their mics were hot during all changeovers.

3. Thought: How many times must we rewind the tape to see what actually happened on a Djokovic return point, only to find that it started with either a) a great first serve and an incredible get by Djokovic to get it back into play, or, b) a very good first serve that comes back right at the opponent’s feet?

The frustrating thing about Djokovic’s returning, for those who would like to see Djokovic adored more for his tennis, is that it’s just too difficult to comprehend. You have to rewind the tape several times otherwise you’ll just gloss over it.

4. Of the Big 3, Djokovic possesses the most subtle game. He doesn’t have the flair or the poetry of Federer (though personally I find his physicality and flexibility museum worthy, how about you?) or the revolutionary torque and Tasmanian devilry of Nadal. His genius comes in layers, in subtleties and oftentimes the casual observer has no idea it is happening. No matter though, the proof is in the winning—it’s a fairly accurate way to measure greatness.

5. Hammering this point home: There were so many times that Thiem hit a very good first serve in this final only to find himself backpedaling to the tram lines to hit an inside out forehand on the next shot. A hard-serving bloke like Thiem should not be regularly forced on the defense on his second shot while serving (He’s looking for serve-plus-one and Djokovic is giving him serve-minus-one). Thiem would much rather have his third shot be from the center of the court. And this is the battle that you have to wage, and this is the battle that the competition so often loses, against Djokovic.

6. Fan in revelry, with Djokovic leading at 5-3 in the fifth, wearing T-Shirt “Serbia against the World.” It does feel that way sometimes. And it is certainly part of the charm.

7. Let’s all give props to the “Carpe Thiem” gang as well, there to support team Thiem. Gotta love tennis fans.

8. “It was like a video game,” Annacone says of Djokovic’s performance in the opening set, not knowing he is near a hot mic, during a changeover. “You could see his skid marks,” replies Tennis Channel’s Ted Robinson in amazement. They are not casual observers.

9. At 3-4 30-30 in the first set, Thiem hits a slice serve way out wide and it comes back screaming crosscourt, vapor trailish, and again Thiem is in the tramlines taking a crack at an improbable winner, which he’s assessed is his only viable option on the play. He misses wide.

10. At this point a graphic on the screen points out the fact that Djokovic led the ATP in breaks of serve after being broken in 2019—he did this after 37 percent of his breaks. Think about how shattering that can be. Think about what it says about Djokovic as a competitor. He’ll bend, then he’ll break (which you could also call “refusing to break”).

11. There were so many times that Djokovic directed a slice return into Thiem’s backhand corner at precisely the place that made the Austrian have a difficult decision about whether to run around the forehand or hit the backhand. That play was so effective and generated quite a few forehand misses, when Thiem could not resist running around.

12. Finally, a set of dealing with Djokovic’s returns forced the double-fault on set point for Thiem. The rough, deflating moment was due to the pressure he faced all set long just as much as it was due to Thiem not owning the moment. The two were one and the same there.

13. Random Stat: Novak Djokovic made nine errors in the 2019 Australian Open against Nadal. Nine. It’s not a joke, it’s an official stat.

14. On Dominic Thiem the emerging force: Yes, he lost the final and therefore could not disrupt Big 3 hegemony at the 2020 Australian Open, but let’s not be mistaken here. Thiem’s rise on hard courts will accelerate the end of the Big 3 era to some degree. The question—how great of a degree?—will be answered over the next two seasons. It will depend greatly on what the Big 3 has left but more important, it will depend on Thiem. More specifically: What further developments the Austrian, who is still just 26 and very much in his prime physical years, can make.

15. Thiem took the angles away from Djokovic in the second set, aiming most of his serves down the T. It was a nice adjustment from the Austrian, which garnered him immediate results and demonstrated his problem-solving capabilities.

16. When Djokovic won a 27-stroke rally in the first point after he had broken to level at 4-4 in the second set, it really felt like he’d be off to the races in this match. He had seemingly weathered the storm, engineered the re-break in set two, and he was ready to take advantage of what looked to be a lull approaching from Thiem’s side of the net. After that rally, which ended with a Thiem crosscourt forehand missing by a hair, the Austrian’s head sunk and he looked dejected.

17. Little did we know what would come next. Thiem’s toughness and resilience cannot be underestimated. Just as Djokovic is a product of chasing Federer and Nadal, Thiem is becoming a product of chasing the Big 3. He has embraced the cause like no other player, and he will reap the rewards someday soon, it seems.

18. The time violation at 15-30: (!) It came just as Djokovic was in his motion and ready to toss the ball. Commentating for Tennis Channel, Martina Navratilova’s initial reaction was one of shock. Then she wondered if chair umpire Damien Dumusois was being strict because the violation had come just after a double-fault. In truth, this one seemed a little nitpicky. However, technically one can’t argue with the fact that Djokovic didn’t have the ball out of his hand by the time the serve clock hit zero. Facts are facts, whether we—or Djokovic—like them or not.

That said, the episode clearly got into Djokovic’s head. He netted an attempted dropper in the ensuing point, and then was dinged again on the next point by Dumusois (this time it appeared that Djokovic fumbled the ball just as he was going to start his motion), losing his first serve at 15-40. Search the annals of tennis and tell me if you’ve ever seen a player dinged on back-to-back points? Of course it made Djokovic crazy. And yet, he wasn’t even close to tossing the ball when the clock hit zero. So what’s Dumusois to do?

“Just ridiculous,” Martina Navratilova would say while commentating for Tennis Channel. “It’s even worse on replay than I realized—there is no way the ump should have called that.”

It actually felt like Djokovic, at that point, wanted to miss the forehand long off of Thiem’s return of his second serve, just so he could go and strangle Dumusois. Instead he demurred and tapped his foot three times, before berating him from his chair. Of course the internet freaked out about that. People wanted to throw the book at Djokovic on Twitter (when do they not?) but in reality the real problem wasn’t that Djokovic had touched the umpires foot, it was that he had blown the set and was not about to spiral into a very un-Djokovician tennis player for a set or so.

19. Watching Dumusois sit there stoically as Djokovic told him “You made yourself famous, good job!” was, let’s say, strange.

20. As far as Djokovic touching the umpire on the foot, I’d say not a great move, but probably one to let go. Or fine him. Whatever. But please don’t label him as Satan incarnate for tapping the guy’s foot.

“I didn't know that's completely forbidden,” Djokovic later mused. “I thought it was a nice really friendly touch,” he added with a smile.

**Okay, moving on…**

21. Tennis can feel very Sisyphean at times. You work for 90 minutes to build what you hope is soon to be an invincible two sets to love lead in a Grand Slam final over a dangerous, hitting-out-of-his-shoes opponent. Suddenly, you pick up time violations on back-to-back points and win one more point before the set ends in your opponent’s favor. It couldn’t have been easy for Djokovic to ponder his Sisyphean fate at that set change. He had pushed the rock to a perfect position—it was going up the hill.

Mentally, Djokovic reacted poorly to the situation and most players can’t afford to react like that against a player like Thiem in a match of that importance.

22. How do we explain what happens to Djokovic next? He is broken three straight times and drops six straight games that saw him produce over 15 unforced errors—suddenly he goes from 4-4 in the second with a shot at a two sets to love lead to one set apiece and down 4-0 in the third set.

Here’s Djokovic’s explanation: “I definitely did not feel good. I didn't know what the next moment brings. I was trying to keep myself alive mentally as well and emotionally because it was disappointing in a way from my side to actually feel this way. I was a bit shocked that I did feel that way because everything was fine before the match. For the first two sets, everything was okay.”

23. At four games down in the third set there was still a lot of tennis to play but with Djokovic teetering on the edge of a mental and physical crisis, how was he going to resist the waves of pugilism that were sure to be coming from Thiem’s side of the net?

24. Those who know Djokovic know that he does possess the ability to rescue himself from certain destruction, and this of course crosses the nuanced spectator’s mind as Thiem is powering through games and Djokovic, far from the taskmaster that he was for much of the first two sets is now a boxer trapped against the ropes, taking body blows and looking like he needs a standing eight count. We wonder, collectively: How is Djokovic going to find a way out of this mess? Is this the time he fails to free himself from the menacing maelstrom and ends up on the bottom of the ocean, a pair of 50-pound weights strapped to his ankles? Stay tuned…

25. A funny changeover at 1-4 ends up being a turning point in a weird way, as Djokovic meets with doctors on court and tells them of the fatigue that has been dragging at him for about 30 minutes. He’s a man in search of answers, in shock (as he alluded to in the quotes we provided above), and very much starting to believe that there is hope if he can just find that missing energy again. He drinks something purple. He sucks on a gel packet. He drinks something clear. He eats a date and pulls open a banana, violently. You won’t see this moment in the post-final highlight reel, but this could be the moment where Djokovic started to believe again.

26. When Djokovic saved break points to hold for 1-1 in set four it was a crucial juncture of the final, perhaps the most critical. It was early in the fourth, and there was ample time for Djokovic to recover the break if he would have needed to—but this was the first time that Djokovic had drawn a line in the sand since 4-4 in the second set. The hold of serve said: Nope, not giving this one up. It was symbolic and it mattered a great deal, not just to Djokovic, who had already started to believe late in the third set, but to Thiem, who was now realizing that he was going to meet some serious resistance over the next hour.

27. Stats: Novak Djokovic was 0-7 in major finals when trailing two sets to one heading into the fourth set with Dominic Thiem, and all men’s singles Grand Slam finalists were 2-46 in the last 48 times that they had fallen behind two sets to one, just to give you an idea of the enormity of his accomplishment on Sunday night.

28. There were some truly spectacular points in this contest, like the beauty with Thiem serving at 3-2 deuce in the fourth. After a trademark Djokovic return down the middle Thiem put the Serb on the run with an inside-out forehand. Djokovic lunged and made a backhand underspin lob that forced Thiem to backpedal all the way back to his baseline. He waited patiently and tagged a forehand crosscourt into the corner, following it to the net. Djokovic’s reply was a screaming forehand pass which Thiem lunged for and volleyed. Djokovic, on the dead sprint from three meters behind the baseline, dashed in to retrieve Thiem’s volley but could not get the ball past the Austrian. Eventually it all led to a Thiem smash into the open court that induced a huge applause from the 15,000 in Rod Laver Arena.

29. Thiem held a point later, inching three games from his first major title. Speaking of Sisyphus…

30. Djokovic is not a great server in the classic sense. But he can be a great server at times. This is an over simplification of course, but it is also true. When he needs to be, like when he was serving at 4-3 15-30 in the fifth set, he can be great. There Djokovic won three points with a variety of different serves, some first and some second to scoot away sneakily with a critical game. No bomb serves. Just poise, intellect and some good old-fashioned spot serving.

This is the beauty of the Djokovic game. He has it all. There's no weakness, and there's so much adaptability, he can devise a winning formula against any player because from a young age he's taken the time and made the effort. He's made sure that he has all the weapons, whether he needs them or not. His serve is a perfect example. It has steadily improved over the years and there it was, late in the fifth set of a hotly contested major final, helping him lock it down.

31. How calm was Djokovic in the fourth set? Amazing that he could summon that part of himself just in time to help him navigate one of the trickiest scenarios imaginable. Case in point: With Thiem serving at 3-4 15-0 he had this look in his eyes. A look of acceptance. He would speak of acceptance after the match, saying that he just had to come to grips with what was happening before he could start solving problems.

32. On the next point it was Thiem (reminder: Thiem serving at 3-4 in the fourth) who proved to be stressed. He missed a makeable forehand volley to allow Djokovic to 15-all. Just one point and not the end of the world, but it was a crack in his armor… and it would be exploited.

33. Djokovic clearly sensed the opportunity that was arising. On the next point (Thiem serving at 3-4 15-15 in the fourth) he stepped out wide and put a big swing on a Thiem slice serve, sending it whizzing crosscourt. It elicited another forehand error and the window was now swinging wide open for Djokovic to gain the critical break in set four.

34. The next point was a double-fault, poorly timed, to give Djokovic two break points at 3-4 15-40 in the fourth. Anticlimactic to say the least, but it was indicitave of the way that game was being played from both sides, with Djokovic pressuring and Thiem desperate.

35. The rock started to roll back down the hill as Thiem launched a forehand long two points later to give Djokovic the 5-3 lead in set four. Things happened quickly from this point.

36. Opinion: Nerves played a big part of Thiem’s demise in some of the critical moments of this match and while it’s concerning, it’s a lot better than the alternative, which would be Thiem not having enough game. The good—actually FANTASTIC—news for Theim is that his game is A-OK for winning majors. So is his fitness.

Thiem just needs a little more seasoning and his time as a major champion will come soon. Also a plus? He’s already demonstrated his ability to overcome nerves (at times) with his four-set win over Rafael Nadal which saw him become the first player in history to take three tiebreakers against the great Spaniard in a single match. It's not like he's a choker. He's just not a finished player in that regard yet and the intense pressure of the final certainly played on his mind more than it should have.

37. Thiem will take a lot from this effort. Sounds like he already has, in fact. “I'm very aware and sure now that I can play on a very high level for a full Grand Slam,” he said after the final. “Didn't have any drops. That doesn't make me proud, but it makes me very confident for the next big tournaments which are coming up.”

38. Stat: Novak Djokovic is 31-10 in five-setters, and 15-6 in five-setters in major quarterfinals, semifinals and finals combined. This is a player that believes at his very core, and delivers the goods in crunch time in GOAT-like fashion.

39. You have to feel for Thiem. He’s played three major finals. Two against Nadal at Roland Garros where the Spaniard is 93-2 lifetime with 12 titles, and one against Djokovic at the Australian Open where the Serb is 75-8 lifetime with eight titles. That is just cruel.

40. Thiem surrendered an easy break to Djokovic in the third game of the final set. He’ll want that one back for a few years.

41. Thiem will also want the forehand he missed on break point with Djokovic serving at 2-1 in the fifth. Oh the anguish on his face after he drilled that forehand into the tape.

42. On Thiem’s next—and final—break point of that game (and match), Djokovic played serve-and-volley and forced a Thiem backhand error. That point was more about Djokovic being tactically shrewd and cool under pressure. Djokovic gets his courage up for those big points and he really seems to understand the psychology involved. He could be a champion poker player.

43. Thiem won a brilliant, lung-sapping 28-stroke rally with Djokovic serving at 4-3 0-0 in the fifth. But he missed a second-serve return on the next point. He would eventually get to 15-30 but draw no closer to a break as Djokovic won the final three points with exceptional clutch serving.

44. With Thiem serving at 3-5 40-15 in the fifth, somebody in the crowd shouts “Let’s Go Rafa!” and then laughs. Is this how a fan chokes? Thinking yes…

45. There was a ridiculous amount of clarity from Novak Djokovic’s side of the court as he served out his 17th major title. He hit every ball with purpose and put his shots exactly where he wanted them to go. No nerves, whatsoever. Which is silly to say, because of course there are nerves, but Djokovic was able to completely suppress them. It's just another example of riding the waves of a match and leaving something in the tank for the biggest of moments. God knows how Djokovic managed this, but in retrospect, he sure did.

46. On the flip side, Thiem played a bit reckless in that final game and made it too easy for Djokovic on a few points. That’s the difference between a 17-time major champion and 26-time major finalist and a three-time runner-up. All the clarity was with Djokovic.

47. In retrospect (again): It actually seemed to help Djokovic to go through the heaps of mid-match turbulence that he experienced. With so much stress and anxiety out of his system, he was able to proceed unabated in sets four and five. But how did he do it? How did Djokovic go from a player in free fall and seemingly on the cusp of dehydration to a cool, calculating juggernaut? Only he knows, and the legend only grows…

48. Also in retrospect (again): How important was that first set for Djokovic? The Serb has now won 54 straight at the majors in matches where he has taken the opener. Credit to him for busting out of the gates this match and creating a template that he could later circle back to and derive belief from.

49. All of the Big 3 have special characteristics, and they are all magical in the clutch, but Djokovic? This man is truly the king of clutch. Just look at what he has done in his last two major finals if you have any questions. Becoming the first player in the Open Era to save championship points in a Wimbledon final was the kicker, but coming back from 2-1 down for the first time in his career in a match that seemed to be all but lost is pretty damn special as well.

50. In summary: That performance pretty much locks down Djokovic’s hold on the men’s singles GOAT of the Australian Open forever. With eight titles in Melbourne, and a 16-0 record in semifinals and finals it is impossible to imagine anybody overtaking him in the Australian Open record books. What does that say about Djokovic big picture? Perhaps that he is a true professional and a player that comes out of the off-season hungry for success. Success in Australia says a lot about his work ethic and how he spends his time in December. And let’s keep in mind: this year was different. Djokovic was not shy about putting his body on the line for Team Serbia in the ATP Cup. He played six matches in singles and another two in doubles—it only seemed to fire him up more.