Goran Ivanisevic was thrilled to watch his charge, Novak Djokovic, make more history Sunday at the Australian Open. The Serbian claimed a record-extending 10th title at the season’s first major.

But it also marked the 35-year-old’s 22nd Grand Slam trophy, tying Rafael Nadal’s record. Ivanisevic is excited to watch Djokovic and Nadal continue battling for the record.

“I said eight or nine years ago that Novak and Rafa will go over Roger,” Ivanisevic said. “People were looking at me like strangely. But we have 22-22. Two unbelievable competitors, two unbelievable tennis players, what they did for the tennis.

“I’m looking forward. Looking forward, honestly, for both of them to be super healthy, then battle is there. And with the young guys who [are] going to try to find backdoors to sneak and try to do something. But still these two guys, they [are] going to have last word to say there.”

There are plenty of young players challenging the legendary duo, including Djokovic’s opponent in Sunday’s final, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and reigning US Open champion Carlos Alcaraz. But Ivanisevic still has his eyes on the Djokovic-Nadal battle.

“We [are] talking about young guys. They’re here, it’s great for tennis, great for the future of tennis. But you still have these two guys battling. This was Novak’s home court, and now we going next one to Rafa home court in this handball match of 22-22,” Ivanisevic said. “Yes, they are coming, Alcaraz, unbelievable. Still, if Rafa steps on the court on the French Open, for me he’s always the favourite to win the tournament.” 

Djokovic arrived at the Australian Open with injury concerns after hurting his left hamstring in Adelaide. Those concerns grew after it was clear his movement was hindered in the early rounds of the tournament.

But in the end the Serbian showed his class at Melbourne Park, claiming the trophy with the loss of just one set during the fortnight.

“I think I have to agree with him like he said, definitely the best one, not only because all what happened last year and he came back, but last three weeks, they were extremely hard,” Ivanisevic said. “I thought I saw everything in 2021 when he won here with the abdominal tear. This one was unbelievable.

“To play like this every day better and better, it’s just impressive.”

Djokovic is known for his relentless baseline game. His dogged defence stymies all levels of opponents and when necessary, he can step into the court and take charge, while his serve is an underrated weapon. But one shot in particular has stood out to Ivanisevic in 2023.

“I’ve been impressed by his forehand all this year. Actually we work a lot. Let’s say in Torino he start to hit the forehands, but we work a lot in the pre-season. Adelaide was not bad,” Ivanisevic said. “But here kind of when he got injured, he needed to be more aggressive. He stepped up and he was smacking forehands unbelievable. Really probably the best two weeks of forehands that I ever saw [from] him in his life. I mean, I never saw him hitting better forehands before. He was really going for it.”

Ivanisevic added that Djokovic is “unbelievable” and that the 93-time tour-level titlist continues to impress the Croatian in new ways.

“The guy is unbelievable. I don’t know how to describe in the words. I thought I saw everything, and then you see this. Probably I’m going to see something else,” Ivanisevic said. “Unbelievable. I know he’s emotional on the court. Doesn’t matter. We talk, he talks. But, like I said before, how he won the tournament, how he played also today in the moments was good tennis, in the moments was bad tennis, but doesn’t matter, overall he won 10 Australian Opens.”

Defeated but not downbeat, Stefanos Tsitsipas was eager to take the positives from his Australian Open run after losing to Novak Djokovic in Sunday’s final.

The Greek, who would have climbed to No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings with victory, produced a series of impressive performances in Melbourne, leaving him confident that a maiden major title and the No. 1 ranking are close.

“I’m just happy that I’m in another Grand Slam final. Of course, I was dreaming about the trophy, lifting that trophy. I even dreamt it last night in my sleep. The desire is really there. I really, really want it badly,” said Tsitsipas, who lost to Djokovic in his first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros in 2021. “But just dreaming about it won’t make it happen. You got to act. You got to do something out there. You got to be present even more and do better.

“[It is] definitely much better playing finals than being stuck behind in the semi-finals. I’ll take that for sure. I just need to take that one more step where I can consistently lift trophies and win Slams and Masters 1000 events.”

Djokovic and Tsitsipas entered their 13th ATP Head2Head meeting knowing victory would take them atop of men’s tennis’ mountain. Up to a joint career-high No. 3 following his 11th defeat against Djokovic, Tsitsipas revealed reaching No. 1 is a major goal.

Having fallen in the third round in Indian Wells and the fourth round in Miami last year, the Greek will have the opportunity to climb to the top before he defends his Monte Carlo crown in April.

“I want to max out in what I do in my profession. No. 1 is on my mind,” Tsitsipas said. “It doesn’t come easy, I know that. I got to work harder to make that happen. Today was my opportunity to be a World No. 1. I had a better opponent on the other side of the net who did things much better than me. He deserves that spot currently.

“I am born a champion. I can feel it in my blood. I can feel it as a competitive kid that I was when I was young. It’s something that is within me. I want to harvest that, make it bloom, make it even stronger and fonder, work hard towards those goals.

”It’s that beautiful number, the number ‘1’, that will make things extremely emotional when converting that.”

Tsitsipas arrived in Melbourne having advanced to the semi-finals on three previous occasions at the hard-court major. Two weeks later and the 24-year-old has added a final appearance to his Australian Open CV.

While he is pleased with his progress, the Greek is hungry for more.

“There are definitely things that I can improve and get better at, given the circumstances today. But I don’t think there’s any reason for me to be affected by today’s loss,” Tsitsipas said. “It is a step forward. I’m looking forward to scoring more points during this season, making bigger results, fighting for bigger trophies.

“I very much enjoy the way I play, my attitude on the court, my mental stability, my concentration levels. There’s still a little bit more to add to the whole structure of my game. I couldn’t be more excited to be heading towards that path.”

Despite falling short, Tsitsipas produced a strong performance against Djokovic. He fired 40 winners and had the opportunity to win the second set, squandering one set point on the Serbian’s serve at 4-5.

Tsitsipas praised the impact Djokovic has had on him when he reflected on his display.

“I did everything possible in order to get a good match against him. My team is working exceptionally to give me the best way that I can approach this, especially today. There is nothing that I didn’t use in my advantage,” Tsitsipas said. “There’s nothing that I could have extracted more for today. I did everything possible.

“Novak is a player that pushes you to your limits. I don’t see this as a curse. I don’t see this as annoying. This is very good for the sport, to have competitors like him, to have champions like him. He has made me a much better player. He has made my levels of concentration higher and higher every single time I get to play him. You have to be really involved and you have to be dedicated to the game when you play against him.”

Novak Djokovic earned a historic win on Sunday at the Australian Open, where he claimed a record-extending 10th title and tied Rafael Nadal’s record of 22 Grand Slam trophies

From Nick Kyrgios to Billie Jean King, stars quickly took to social media to congratulate the champion on his victory at Melbourne Park.

Haha I told you. We created a monster. Well done @DjokerNole …. Sat on my couch and enjoyed the entire show 💰🙏🏽 soak it all in….

— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) January 29, 2023

What a CHAMPION!!!
Idemo Nole 🙌🏆#AusOpen #AO23 @DjokerNole https://t.co/CMLKfVuFPY

— Juan M. del Potro (@delpotrojuan) January 29, 2023

Congratulations to the 10x #AusOpen Men’s Singles Champion, @DjokerNole! https://t.co/icMzBMHuc7

— Billie Jean King (@BillieJeanKing) January 29, 2023

Congratulations on a 10th Australian Open title Novak Djokovic, 35 and at the peak of your powers. You’ve been as relentless as I’ve seen you these past two weeks. It was a privilege to watch such a superb final against your young rival Stefanos Tsitsipas. Bravo to you both! 🚀

— Rod Laver (@rodlaver) January 29, 2023

Congrats @DjokerNole 🙏❤️ you are truly an inspiration.
👏👏👏👏 https://t.co/mYP81fIgdJ

— Ons Jabeur (@Ons_Jabeur) January 29, 2023

Congrats Djoker @DjokerNole on winning your amazing 10th @AustralianOpen and 22nd slam 💪😎👊👍 standing ovation 👏

— Brad Gilbert (@bgtennisnation) January 29, 2023

At the moment it looks like there is no stopping @DjokerNole , 10th @AustralianOpen title ,22nd Major and counting. Since Wimbledon victory has only lost 2 matches and won 6 titles. By far the best player on the planet. 12-0 to start the year!👏👏👏

— Greg Rusedski (@GregRusedski1) January 29, 2023

The GOAT thing was 2 years ago… 🐐 @DjokerNole pic.twitter.com/fMcqltikKP

— Janko Tipsarevic (@TipsarevicJanko) January 29, 2023

Congrats, @DjokerNole to you and your team on winning your 10th @AustralianOpen and 22nd Grand Slam title! #AO2023 #Djokovic

— Nicolas Kiefer (@Nicolas_Kiefer) January 29, 2023

Winning in the @AustralianOpen with all the emotional that came with it to score 22 Slams and 10 AO, is one of the greatest sport’s achievements.

— Patrick Mouratoglou (@pmouratoglou) January 29, 2023

Can’t remember a time I was this happy for someone winning a tennis match. So deserving @DjokerNole #22 🐐 pic.twitter.com/eChy0Cd6Jk

— Vasek Pospisil (@VasekPospisil) January 29, 2023

Not too bad @DjokerNole 😅

— EdouardRogerVasselin (@ERogerVasselin) January 29, 2023

Novak Djokovic claimed a record-tying 22nd Grand Slam title on Sunday when he won the Australian Open, extending his lead in the ‘Big Titles’ Race’ over Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

The Serbian defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 7-6(4), 7-6(5) in the championship match at Melbourne Park to claim his 66th ‘Big Title’, which encompasses trophies at Grand Slam championships, the Nitto ATP Finals, ATP Masters 1000 tournaments and Olympic singles gold medals.

Djokovic is seven ‘Big Titles’ clear of his biggest rivals. Nadal owns 59 of them and Federer, who retired at last year’s Laver Cup, completed his career with 54.

Djokovic has won one ‘Big Title’ for every 3.2 events played (66/210), while Nadal has earned one for every 3.5 tournaments he has played (59/208). The only other players who have won a ‘Big Title’ at a greater rate than once per five events played are Federer (4.4, 54/240) and Pete Sampras (4.9, 30/147).

It was a historic fortnight Down Under for Djokovic, who claimed a record-extending 10th Australian Open crown. The 35-year-old has lifted more trophies at the season’s first major than at any other Grand Slam, with Wimbledon (7) next on the list.

Djokovic became the third-oldest man in the Open Era to triumph at the Australian Open, trailing only Ken Rosewall and Federer, who both accomplished the feat aged 36. With his victory against Tsitsipas in the championship clash, the Serbian has also won 17 consecutive matches against Top 5 opponents at the tournament.

The triumph will return Djokovic to World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday, when he will begin his record 374th week in top spot. 

Current and Former Champions’ Big Titles Won (Records Since 1990)

^ Includes Olympic Games gold medals and tournament participations
* Becker’s four other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.
** Edberg’s three other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.
*** Chang’s one Grand Slam title came before 1990

Novak Djokovic is two sets away from a record-extending 10th Australian Open title after claiming the first set against Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3 in Sunday’s championship match in Melbourne.

Djokovic came into the match with a 9-0 record in Australian Open finals and has won his past nine tour-level meetings against the 24-year-old Tsitsipas. Should he go on to complete victory on Sunday and extend his ATP Head2Head record against the Greek to 11-2, the Serbian will draw level with Rafael Nadal’s record of 22 Grand Slam titles.

It is the second meeting between Djokovic and Tsitsipas in a major final. At Roland Garros in 2021, Djokovic rallied from two-sets-to-love down to down the Greek and claim victory on the Paris clay, but he gave Tsitsipas few opportunities to establish a similar early lead on Sunday in Melbourne.

Despite Tsitsipas scoring an early morale-booster by saving two break points from 15/40 to hold for 1-1, Djokovic’s typically consistent and accurate groundstrokes dominated the first set on Rod Laver Arena. He frequently piled pressure onto the Tsitsipas backhand and the Greek was unable to repeat the escape in the fourth game, when Djokovic clinched the only break of the set.

Whoever prevails in Sunday’s final will enjoy a double reward for their success in Melbourne. Both Djokovic and Tsitsipas know that victory at the first Grand Slam of the 2023 season guarantees them the No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

More to follow…