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MELBOURNE: Tennis hot property Novak Djokovic broke through for his
first Grand Slam triumph with a dramatic four-set victory over
unseeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at the Australian Open on
Sunday.
The 20-year-old third seed became the first Serb
to win a tennis Grand Slam, coming from behind to register a 4-6,
6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (7-2) victory over the tournament bolter in three
hours six minutes.
Djokovic’s victory was the first Grand Slam
final since the 2005 Australian Open not won by Roger Federer or
Rafael Nadal with the top-ranked pair dominating the game with the
last 11 majors between them.
Djokovic and Tsonga rocked the established order
by dumping Federer and Nadal out in the semi-finals to set up a
decider unimaginable at the start of the tournament.
The Serb went on to claim his first major title
in his 13th Grand Slam after losing to Federer in last year’s US
Open final and also reaching the semifinals at the French Open and
Wimbledon.
The victory stretched his winning streak to 11
matches, beating his previous best unbeaten run.
Djokovic will remain at No. 3 in rankings behind
Federer and Nadal after his win but Tsonga is projected to climb to
18 from 38.
-- AFP
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