Novak Djokovic: Great at tennis, terrible at opening champagne bottles
Novak Djokovic won his fourth Italian Open title on Sunday, beating Roger Federer 6-4, 6-3 in the final to extend his unbeaten streak to 22 matches. The top seed and defending champion saved the one break point he faced, and after breaking Federer to seal the first set he cruised to a clean straight-set win.
After all the complains this week about the poor condition of the center court in Rome, it looked like Djokovic would leave the Eternal City unscathed. But the Serb came incredibly close to sustaining a serious injury when the cork from his celebratory champagne nearly took his eye out:
Djokovic was treated on court for a cut on his nose and joked afterwards that the champagne was just getting its revenge.
Phew! That was close. How crazy would it have been if Djokovic's intense quest for his first French Open title had been upended by a rogue cork. As it is, Djokovic put his stamp on the clay season once again and many consider him the favorite over Rafael Nafal at the French Open which starts in a week. Djokovic goes into Paris with a 10-0 mark on clay and a 14-1 record against Top 10 opposition this year.
Earlier in the day Maria Sharapova won her third Italian Open title, beating Carla Suarez Navarro 4-6, 7-5, 6-1. The reigning French Open champion will move back up to No. 2 on Monday, ensuring her the No. 2 seed behind Serena Williams in Paris.
Sharapova's day wasn't free from hijinks either. Watch this ballboy take a tumble as he races to grab her an umbrella during the changeover:
