MELBOURNE, Australia – Novak Djokovic wore down Rafael Nadal in the longest Grand Slam singles final in the history of professional tennis, winning 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 after 5 hours, 53 minutes to claim his third Australian Open title.
Djokovic wrapped it up at 1:37 a.m. local time on Monday, becoming the fifth man since the Open Era began in 1968 to win three straight Grand Slam finals.
The 24-year-old Djokovic tore off his shirt in celebration after the riveting final. He went to his support camp and repeatedly thumped the side of the arena in front of them in delight and relief.
Nadal leaned on the net, while Djokovic sat on his haunches before the trophy presentation. Eventually, an official brought them chairs and a bottle of water each.
“We made history tonight and unfortunately there couldn’t be two winners,” Djokovic said.
Djokovic maintained his mastery of Nadal, who has lost seven straight finals against the Serb since March last year. The Spainiard became the first man in the Open Era to lose three straight major finals. He lost in four sets to Djokovic at last year’s Wimbledon and U.S. Open.
Having reduced Roger Federer to tears when he won the title over
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