Jannik Sinner rallied from a two-set deficit to overcome Russia’s Daniil Medvedev 3-6 3-6 6-4 6-4 6-3 in a thrilling five-set final to win the men’s Australian Open on Sunday, becoming the first Italian man to win a major slam since 1976.
Sinner’s miraculous comeback culminated a memorable campaign in which he overcame world No. 1 Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals on his way to his first grand slam final and won his first major trophy.
Such drama provided a fitting conclusion to a tournament that 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 putting pressure on the young Italian, who was left defending from every corner of the court in the aftermath of the No. 3 seed’s precise, aggressive approach.
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However, as the match progressed, Sinner came back, changed his own strategies, and began outlasting his opponent in lengthier 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 was shifting. Sinner’s enthusiasm carried him through the fourth and fifth sets, when he overcame the deficit to become the youngest male player to win the Australian Open since 2008, as well as the third Italian guy to win a grand slam.
“I’m quite proud. “I don’t know what’s going on,” Sinner told Eurosport afterwards. “It was a tough match. He began off pretty well; he manoeuvred me over the court, and I couldn’t make my game plan work.
“But then, in the third set, I was seeking for minor opportunities, which I took, and then, at some point, the game changed, and I’m really satisfied with how I responded. Now there are so many feelings; I suppose I need to sit down and analyse everything, but it’s an incredible sensation.”
Medvedev saw it as a painful replay of the 2022 Australian Open final, which he lost to Rafael Nadal after squandering a two-set lead. Following his loss to Sinner, the 27-year-old made undesired history as the first player in the Open Era to lose successive grand slam finals in this manner. It had been a long, arduous road to the final, with him playing in three five-set epics and spending nearly 21 hours on the court prior to Sunday’s encounter with Sinner, and as the match approached its conclusion, his exhaustion began to show.
A five-set thriller
After losing two Australian Open finals to Novak Djokovic in 2021 and Rafael Nadal in 2022, Medvedev played with a determined intensity in the first two sets. He broke Sinner early in the first set to take a 2-1 lead, converting his second break opportunity when the Italian hesitated at the net and seized a passing shot, before breaking him again to seal the victory.
While Sinner was competing in his first grand slam final, Medvedev was already a grand slam champion playing in his fourth major final, and the difference in experience was evident early on as the Russian dominated the pace of the match with 14 winners and five aces.
Medvedev continued to press Sinner at the start of the second set, forcing him to serve out a protracted game with five deuces, but the young Italian held out until dropping the break in his next service game. He was down a double break shortly after, and although breaking back, Medvedev closed out the second set, presumably with one hand on the trophy.
The third set was more evenly matched, with both players remaining resolute on service until Sinner broke Medvedev when serving to stay in the set, kicking off his remarkable comeback. And momentum continued to go Sinner’s way as he created a break point during each of Medvedev’s first two service games at the start of the fourth set, despite the Russian’s panicked defence initially holding out.
Medvedev also had an opportunity to score a crucial blow, bringing up a break point with Sinner serving and the set tied at 3-3, but the Italian hit an ace to end the threat. Sinner quickly levelled the match, breaking Medvedev again when he served to stay in the set, eliciting roars from the audience at Rod Laver Arena.
“In my head,” Sinner told Eurosport after the game, “I knew [Medvedev] had played so many hours on the court, and the longer the match goes on, I knew that I might be the favourite, and I think that today was very important.”
As Medvedev tired, Sinner took command of the match, sealing a crucial break point early in the fifth set with a crosscourt forehand winner before completing his remarkable comeback with a forehand down the line and collapsing to the floor to celebrate his first grand slam victory. Sinner’s triumph places him among Nicola Pietrangeli and Adriano Panatta as one of Italy’s grand slam winners.
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