Paris: Grand Slam No 19 was not easy to say the least. But then for ‘super human’ Novak Djokovic as many commentators described him, climbing new peaks is just another natural event. In an epic French Open men’s final played Sunday, Djokovic after being two sets to love down, came back to win a thriller in a match that lasted fours and 12 minutes. Djokovic in the end prevailed 6-7 (6-8), 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 over Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas.
It was a match that none deserved to lose, but in the end there had to be one winner. And it was Djokovic’s resilience, that ability to raise his level by just a few notches that took him past the youthful exuberance and brilliance of Tsitsipas. After his semifinal win against RaFa Nadal, the Serb had compared it to ‘climbing a mountain as tall as Mount Everest’. Well in overcoming the fifth-seeded Tsitsipas, the World No. 1 had to certainly go one step further. He was two sets down and Tsitsipas was finding unbelievable angles on the court.
But then Djokovic weathered the storm, and then created a cyclone of his own in the remaining three sets of the match to finally emerge smiling. However, he was the first to acknowledge the challenge that Tsitsipas had put him through. “These challenges bring out the best. You have to dig deep and I was not just ready to throw in the towel,” Djokovic said after the match.
In the end it was a matter of a few points here and there. If Tsitsipas was winning the crucial points in the first two sets, then it was the turn of Djokovic to do so in the next three. In the process, the Serbian achieved the feat of winning all Grand Slam titles twice or more.
The 34-year-old Djokovic eliminated 13-time French Open champion Nadal in a semifinal that lasted more than four hours Friday night. That might be why the 22-year-old Tsitsipas had the upper hand early, and Djokovic looked drained for two sets.
Eventually, though, he started making fewer mistakes, got his best-in-the-game returning on track, served almost flawlessly down the stretch and was able to complete his sixth career comeback from two sets down – and second of the past week.
