Rafael Nadal Is The Comeback King, And The Big Three's New Leader

Rafa now stands alone, jumping Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, after winning his 21st career Slam title. We reflect on Nadal's epic comeback and more from the past two weeks.

Hamish Blair/Associated Press

We sure have come a long way in two weeks. Cleaning out the notebook (or notes app) after a cracker of an Australian Open.

1. Nadal pulls ahead for the first time
Rafa Nadal takes over the men's all-time Grand Slam singles lead, winning his 21st by taking the title in extraordinary fashion—a nearly six-hour match, coming back from two sets down against the hottest player in the draw, Daniil Medvedev. 

This isn't the first five-set win Nadal's had in a major final, but it's the only one where he spent this much time playing from behind. Apart from that, apart from winning a second Career Slam at age 35, apart from the French Open looming ... Nadal exorcised his Melbourne demons. Imagine stepping top to the line, up a break, to win an historical major, knowing the last time you were in the same position on the same court you failed ... and then serving it out a second time. Vamos.

A final of Herculean proportions, thank you for a brilliant contest @RafaelNadal and @DaniilMedwed. Two AO crowns and 21 majors, given everything you have endured this historic victory is so special Rafa. It has been a privilege to watch you doing what you love. Congratulations🚀

— Rod Laver (@rodlaver) January 30, 2022

2. A bittersweet ending for Medvedev
Medvedev could not make history as the first man to win his first major and then back it up with a consecutive second, but he sure came close. The favorite to win after the Novak Djokovic withdrawal acquitted himself like the Hall of Famer he is, winning six matches against a variety of opponents. And winning the first two sets of the final. He will leave disappointed not to close it out. But four slam finals in the last 30 months? He’s established himself.

3. The top seed lives up to her billing
Ash Barty didn’t drop a set en route to becoming the first Aussie singles champion in 44 years. In keeping with the subject, there are so many angles here. First: variety is the spice of championship-winning tennis. Barty’s serve might be the most effective weapon in women’s tennis, but the diversity in her shotmaking is her ultimate strength. There was chatter before the final that she might win and mic-drop retire. That didn’t happen. Let’s hope the challenge of sustaining her best-in-the-business status (and the pursuit of a reachable Career Slam) is motivation enough to keep her around.

4. Expect more from Collins
Danielle Collins is now in the Top 10 and the world’s top-ranked American. (Someone get her a clothing deal.) Her run to the final was a cocktail of sweet ball-striking, superior fitness and unwillingness to retreat. What you see with Collins is what you get, and tennis is better for it.

5. A change for Stef?
Here are Stefanos Tsitsipas’ last four majors: A French Open final in which he won the first two sets and failed to close. A first-round defeat at Wimbledon. A strange U.S. Open where he was mocked by Andy Murray for using the bathroom as a cover for getting in-match coaching and was then later defeated by a teenager. Another semifinal run in Melbourne, but then a bitter exit, as he lost to a rival and found himself embroiled in more controversy around skirting rules. At what point does Tsitsipas, who is coached by his father, rethink that situation as his career plateaus?

6. The other big winners
At these majors, 127 players in each draw leave in defeat. But some of the non-champs in Australia still managed to win big in January. Two in this category: Madison Keys and Felix Auger-Aliassime. Keys was barely in the top 100 to start the year. Now, she has a title, semifinal points, and an oversized saddlebag of confidence to go with all her power. Felix, meanwhile, played a tactical tournament and made a third-straight deep run at a major, sticking in his crampons deeper into the Top 10.

7. Nick Kyrgios, everyone!
We had sworn off devoting more time to Nick Kyrgios until he won something … and that didn’t last long, as he teamed with childhood friend Thanasi Kokkanakis to win the men’s doubles title, the ultimate Australian Open B storyline. Their run included wins against four seeded teams before taking down another all-Aussie pairing, Max Purcell and Matt Ebden, in the final. There will be plenty of talk about Kyrgios and whether he has finally found his place in the sport as a doubles specialist. But don’t fall asleep on the Big Boi to Kyrgios’ Andre 3000. Kokkinakis has already won a singles title and is, happily, back to being a relevant two-way player, still only 25.

❤️🤍❤️🤍 https://t.co/UBQu4p7Jmm

— Nicholas Kyrgios (@NickKyrgios) January 29, 2022

8. The rest of the doubles slate
The Ash Bartys of the women’s doubles draw—organized, versatile, top-seeded—Katerina Siniakova and Barbora Krejcickova, took the title, their first in Australia. In the mixed, a former WTA top-ranked doubles player (and once a Top 10 singles player) Kristina Mladenovic, teamed with Ivan Dodig to take the title.

9. Some noteworthy results in the juniors
American Bruno Kuzuhara took both the boys titles. (And then, after the singles final, gave speeches in English, Japanese and Portuguese, but not before helping his opponent.) The top seed, Petra Marcinko of Croatia, took the girls title. As always, Colette Lewis has you covered.

10. A message for Tennis Australia
Despite the excellent tennis—and some fortuitous results, both in singles and doubles—it was a rough event for the Australian Open organizers and Tennis Australia. Here’s a pep talk: 

“Guys, trust your product. When you cut corners and ignored deadlines and (likely) played fast and loose with the truth in filling out paperwork— and were obviously complicit in trying to squire an unvaccinated star into the country—it sent a message that you didn’t believe in your own product. That’s also the message you send when you claim the tournament is in danger of moving off the island. It’s a hollow threat. Know why? Because you have built a first-rate global sporting event. You’ve done such an admirable job getting your major on par with the others. You’ve made so many savvy decisions. Anyone that knows tennis knows that no market—not China, not Saudi Arabia, not Doha, not Dubai—is going to swoop in and take your baby. Even after COVID has hammered your balance sheets, you’ll be fine long term. You’re bigger than any one star. Stand tall. You belong where you are. Start acting like it.”

11. The stars you’re likely missing
Dylan Alcott, playing his final event, did not win the quad singles title, but this postmatch session is worth the price of admission. All your wheelchair results are here. And, again, we highly recommend following these players.

12. Let’s not forget about the fans
The—how to put this?—suboptimal television coverage in the United States was the subject of much, er, spirited, (read: angry) discussion. Martina Navratilova, Lindsay Davenport, Steve Weissman and I did a daily pre-game show that often led to … no matches. Why? Because our network, Tennis Channel, was boxed out this year. And ESPN was, reasonably, not about to break into primetime football and basketball for tennis. I’m deeply compromised here, but some quick thoughts:

• A lot of this falls on Tennis Australia. The fundamental question: do you simply want to cash the largest check? Or do you want to broadcast/promote/present your event (and, by extension, tennis) responsibly in the U.S.?

• With its uncertain start times and uncertain match lengths, tennis is ideal for streaming. It’s easy to see why ESPN would want to put this on ESPN+. That said, ESPN’s erratic windows and cut-ins and erroneous listings, were clearly enraging. I heard from hundreds of you—college coaches, former players, non-luddites—with complaints. This is a problem. One that can’t be dismissed by effectively saying, “It’s 2022. Order the streaming for an extra seven bucks and shut up already, Boomers.”

• These programming decisions are not made by broadcasters. ESPN analysts Pam Shriver and John (birthday wishes) McEnroe and James Blake and Darren Cahill, et al? They do great work. They’re not the problem. Don’t direct your outrage at them.

• Collaboration and greater-good-of-the-sport are not, usually, tennis fallbacks. But it would be awfully nice if the fans were prioritized. Seems to me there’s an easy solution. One that includes Tennis Channel, gives ESPN the tonnage it wants and serves the audience and doesn’t cost Tennis Australia a cent in marginal revenue. But it requires cooperation.

The real problem: this is all self-perpetuating. Bury tennis on paid streaming platforms, scrimp on promotion and mistreat it with programming decisions … and, naturally, ratings will rival those for Bavarian Darts League. When the ratings decline, it only gives the suits more justification for mistreating the sport.

13. It’s getting (too) hot in here
I was told Nadal lost nine (!) pounds and suffered heat stroke in his quarterfinal match against Denis Shapovalov. Mind you, this is among the best-conditioned athletes in the world. That same day, in the course of the first changeover, Krejickova got a sunburn. Alize Cornet complained the heat was “inhuman” and “insane.” We saw ice vests. We saw players winning in heat but failing to recover within 48 hours. We saw players reflexively going to the shaded spots of the court. Ticketed fans stayed away, unwilling to endure conditions described alternately as “brutal” and “scorching.” As Navratilova says, “It becomes about survival, not the tennis.” At the risk of getting all “Don’t Look Up” … bless the food courts and the mascots and the music and the Happy Slam vibes, but what is the long-term future of holding this event in January if it is simply too hot to play?

14. Sabalenka serving some solutions
We are no longer permitted to accuse Aryna Sabalenka, the world No. 2, of lacking a Plan B or alternative gears. Faced with the real-time crisis of the serving yips—double-digit double-faults—she improvised and played on, getting to the fourth round before losing 7-6 in the third set against Kaia Kanepi. She obviously needs to repair her serving problem ASAP, she revealed a great deal about herself and her problem-solving instincts. Brava.

15. The weight of the WTA’s stand
One pity—one of many, to be sure—of L’Affaire Djokovic: it diverted attention from concerns about the health/wellness/whereabouts of Peng Shuai and the WTA’s brave and honorable stance against authoritarian China. If you needed to see just how bravely the WTA has acted, the Australian Open—in a tournament filled with uncharacteristic errors—provided a counterpoint when it banned a fan from wearing a “Where is Peng Shuai?” T-shirt. Eventually, Tennis Australia reversed course on the shirt issue, but the whole incident underscored the WTA’s courage.

16. Those shirts are available for purchase here.

17. As for the next chapters in the saga …
I hear WTA CEO Steve Simon had hoped to resolve the issue of the WTA Chinese event suspension by the end of the Australian Open. The Chinese tournaments asked for more time, until after the Winter Olympics, to see if the government will respond to the WTA’s demand for an investigation. By the end of February, we should have clarity on the fall calendar and the likely formal announcement that there will be no 2022 China swing (and other substitute markets can tender offers). As for Peng, I’m told she will likely make an appearance at the Olympics in some sort of nothing-to-see-here-folks role, but this issue/crisis is by no means over.

18. ​​Back to the Djokovic saga …
I’m not only hung up on how an event usually buttoned up had so many unforced errors, but also on how utterly predictably the crises were. We knew months ago that Novak Djokovic was unvaccinated and his respect for science was such that he thought he could use positive energy to turn water into pineapple kombucha. Maybe, if you were Tennis Australia, you would want to gameplan that a little better? We knew in November that Peng Shaui and China was going to continue to be a storyline. And yet, Tennis Australia creates a situation where a shirt asking about the whereabouts and health of a former player is called unacceptably “political” and “commercial”? What a cowardly and logically flawed stance. The rainbow attire worn, admirably, by Liam Broady and Thanasi Kokkinakis on Pride Day? Was that political? Matteo Berrettini, hilariously, signing a camera “imodium grazie,” was that not commercial? If you’re going to restrict free speech, you do it at your peril.

19. Glass half empty, or full, for Shapo?
Shapovalov went down in five sets against Nadal, a courageously played match tarnished when Shapo accused chair umpire Carlos Bernardes (ironically, a former Nadal nemesis) of “corruption.” You wonder what Shapo might be thinking as he leaves the continent. Here are two options that aren’t necessarily mutually exclusive: I had a strong Australian swing that included a straight-set takedown of Zverev! Or, I lost a winnable match against Nadal and diminished myself with silly allegations.

20. Max Cressey was a huge revelation
The dude keeps coming. A serve-and-volleyer committed to the act, Cressy came netward 434 times (!!) in his four matches. One underrated advantage in tennis: a sui generis style. It’s not easy for opponents to simulate playing a 6-6 server who charges in every time. Cressey started the year barely in the top 100. He could easily be seeded at the French Open.

21. About that documentary …
L’Affaire Djokovic also leeched attention from the announcement that Netflix was producing a tennis “Formula One: Drive to Survive”-style documentary series. Docs are like laws and sausages. You don’t want to see how they’re made. It will be interesting to see what storylines and players are featured, how much facetime is accorded non-IMG clients and what side-deals were cut with top players to ensure their participation. Still, this is a win for tennis, and a good sign about the current collaborative status between the ATP and WTA.

22. Another strong Slam for Pegula
Not unlike Felix Auger-Aliassime, Jessie Pegula should be leaving the tournament with her head held high. For the second straight year, she reached the Australian Open’s second week. She was outclassed by Ash Barty (the day after the Buffalo Bills’ defeat), but has become that player beau ideal: her colleagues adore/respect in the locker room and despise her as an opponent.

23. Another point for the U.S. in the men’s draw
Taylor Fritz reached the fourth round of a major for the first time and acquitted himself well, losing a five-setter to Tsitsipas. Last year, you’ll recall, he lost another five-setter, then to Djokovic in the third round. He’s the ATP’s top American, he’s still maturing, and, to his credit, is beyond the point of moral victories.

24. Shoutout to Miomir Kecmanovic
The 22-year-old Serb was supposed to play Djokovic in the first round, not only the top player and nine-time champ but a fellow countryman. It must have been quite a reset when Kecmanovic got matched, instead, against Sal Caruso. Kecmanovic won that match, and two more, before falling to Gael Monfils in the fourth round.

25. The youngest veteran on tour?
What an Australia for Amanda Anisimova. At 20, she’s been through a great deal. Three years ago, she reached the semifinals in Paris. Now, here she is in 2022, winning an event, taking down Naomi Osaka and reaching the second week of a major. We’ll see if she formalizes her partnership with Darren Cahill—h/t our pal Robbie Koening for noting that Cahill has a strong record with players initialized A.A.—but what an auspicious start to the year for a player holding chits over the Tennis Fates.

26. What the hell happened to the No. 3 seeds?
Sometimes, players are outplayed. Sometimes, they face difficult matchups. Sometimes, they are dinged up. Other times … they simply fail to post. Garbine Muguruza, a former finalist, lost in the second round 6-3, 6-3 to Alize Cornet without even getting a break point. Alexander Zverev lost to Shapovalov during the middle weekend in straight sets. It all throws the greats into sharp relief. These players’ metronomic consistency, reaching the business rounds of majors—avoiding or playing through these “woke-up-on-the-wrong-side-of-the-bed days”—is an underrated aspect of their awesomeness. They just don’t/didn’t take many losses like these.

27. Every match tells a story, don’t it?
Tammy Zidansek up 6-4, 4-1, 30-0 on Cornet, six points from advancing to the second week. A few loose points and it all starts swirling the wrong way. Cornet wins in three. We see a result like that and say, “Cornet advances. Good for her in what might be the final year.” You forget how close she was to losing.

28. Everything is all right for Radacanu
You know who had a positive event on balance? Emma Radacanu. Since winning the 2021 U.S. Open, she’s gone 2-4, which only seemed to reinforce just how wild those two weeks in Queens were. In Australia, she beat the recently betrothed Sloane Stephens and then, hampered by a hand blister that left her slicing forehands, lost in three sets against Danka Kovinic. No shame there. She’s 19. She already has a major and generational wealth. She’s in the top 25. She’s defending scant points for the next few months. She’ll be fine. (An aside: Daniil Medvedev garnered 2,000 points for winning the U.S. Open; Raducanu took 2,040—2,000 for the title and another 40 for qualifying!)

29. Five players who didn’t get out of Week One but impressed nonetheless
Sebastien Baez, Clara Tauson (the anti-Caroline Wozniacki), Hailey Baptiste, Botic van de Zandschulp, Soonwoo Kwon and Harmony Tan.

30. Another edition of “Nick Kyrgios winning friends in the locker room”
Following a Kyrgios/Kokkinakis’ doubles win, the on-court announcer gushed to Kygios: “It’s not easy picking apart these established doubles teams!” Kyrgios: “It’s been pretty easy.” What did doubles veteran Michael Venus call Kyrgios the other day? Oh, right. “An immature knob.” Among the many mysteries of Kyrgios: We often say he picked the wrong sport and plays his best when he’s in a team format. But, if he was playing a team sport, he would have been called out by his own teammates by now.

31. We should not see double in this scenario
“There should be a rule,” is a fallback in tennis, as it is in life. Not sure we always need firm policy. Sometimes a gentle nudge. That said, can the authorities at least encourage players/manufacturers not to attire two opponents identically? No one wins. The players are difficult for casual fans to differentiate. The manufacturer frustrates fans, and only one outfit gets put on display.

32. Go home, everyone! Try again next year!
It’s still January, but Pablo Carreno Busta has already hit the Shot of 2022:

33. Many pleasant B/C/D storylines
Players in the junior draws from Kenya and Iran? The i’m-not-crying-you’re-crying interviews with Jelena Dokic. The continued range of ages—tennis is increasingly able to accommodate both teenagers and players in their late 30s. This sport is as good as it gets.

34. A lot was made of live rankings
Mid-tournament, Naomi Osaka—in failing to defend her title—dropped out of the top 80, while Sonia Kenin (now back with Pops) dropped out of the top 90. More: Serena is out of the top 100 and Venus Williams is barely in the top 500. Three of the four will have no problem getting wild cards to relevant tournaments, but that doesn’t provide insulation from having to face a seed. Imagine the possibility of Osaka having to play Serena in the first round at Wimbledon … with the winner playing a seed.

35. In case you missed it
Here’s the story of Michael Center, former University of Texas men’s tennis coach, who took the fall for the school’s involvement in the Varsity Blues scandal.

36. One more thing about that Netflix doc
At the Tennis Channel roundtable, we were joking about possible titles for the Netflix Series. “Net Flicks” was an inspiring choice. (“King Srdjan” was rejected but was good for a laugh.) We were also joking about storylines. One was following Kanepi on the weeks she doesn’t play a major. At 36, she reached still another second week, falling gamely in the quarters against Iga Swiatek.

37. No to ‘Siuuu’
Is there anything dumber than “the siuuu” chants at tennis? No, there is not. “Rubbish trend” is perfect.

38. Change in leadership?
There was more than a little chatter about the job security of Tennis Australia CEO Craig Tiley. I suspect he survives. He’s done too much and accumulated too much good will. But do note that the USTA has a big job opening. And, meanwhile, the French Federation has a new leadership team, including new Roland Garros tournament director Amelie Mauresmo. No surprise Wimbledon sets the standard for governance.

39. Tip of the visor to Cici Bellis
The 2017 WTA Newcomer of the Year attributed her recent retirement from tennis to the arm injuries that have kept her off court for most of the past few years. She’s 22 and has a lot of paved open road ahead of her.

40. More fond farewells
Sam Stosur, of course, played her last singles match. Frederik Nielsen announced his retirement. Sania Mirza played Australia for the final time.

41. Down, but not out yet
Rafa Nadal was, incredibly, the only former champ in the men’s draw. (And of the former women’s champs, all were out by the third round.) But how about the other active former champ who had to send his regrets? Stan Wawrinka. And while we are here, note that Juan Martin del Potro, 33, is slated to play two South American events next month, launching another comeback.

42. I fear for the PTPA
It’s hard to look at tennis—men’s tennis, especially—and say: “Yes, the status quo works great. Great governance model! The players and their talents are fairly represented! The revenues and decision-making are split equitably! No need for a union or for labor and management to cease sitting on the same side of the table!”

Conversely it’s hard to look at the Professional Tennis Players Association and say: “Yes, this model works great! A players’ association led by an unvaccinated, walking public relations disaster, clowned on Saturday Night Live, who seeks special treatment. This is exactly how we will improve both wages and working conditions, gain credibility in the marketplace and win over public opinion!”

43. Tough times for local newspapers
We’ve moved from “do more with less” to “do everything—report, tweet, video—with less.” Against that backdrop, consider the dazzling quality of reporting from Karen Sweeney and Paul Sakkal, two of the few winners from the Djokovic debacle.

44. Periodic reminder
Tennis is susceptible to the currency markets. One Aussie dollar is worth $.72 U.S. dollars. On the day of the 2021 Australian Open final, it was $.79. Events send out splashy press releases about increases in prize money, but note these increases are often offset, or amplified, by fluctuations in exchange rates.

45. The qualifiers
As always, nothing exposes the brutality of tennis quite like the qualies draws. The top seed in the men and women, (Andrej Martin and Kalinskaya) lost in the first round. Marcos Trungelliti —a whistleblower treated shabbily to whom we all owe a debt of gratitude— got through. Dudi Sela, attempting a comeback at age 36, lost. Emi Bektas beat Christina McHale 7-6 in the third in the final round.

46. A look ahead
Note the strength of the commitment list of the ATP Cleveland Open event: Jenson Brooksby, Sebastian Korda, Ryan Harrison, Brandon Nakashima.

47. No jitters here
Last year’s Australian Open women’s finalist, Jen Brady—as cool as you suspect she is—did some Tennis Channel sessions with us and will be back in the studio in February. She is rehabbing from her plantar fasciitis foot issue and is targeting an early spring return with new coach Andrew Bettles.

48. Should all the Cups stack together?
The ATP Cup was—all together now—overshadowed by L’Affaire Djokovic, which may have been a blessing in disguise. This has always been a deeply flawed and unnecessary event in theory, and it’s playing out that way in practice. The whole concept of national tribalism is out of vogue. (Few tennis fans root for players based on country code, and few players claim loyalty to just one country.) The team selection process is problematic. (Consider Greece, with one player in the top five and no others in the Top 400.) Spain played in the ATP Cup final—while Nadal played in the final of the Melbourne tuneup and Alcaraz missed the ranking cutoff. And, of course, the Davis Cup feels like it just wrapped up last Tuesday. If this is a normal business construct, someone rolls up (stacks?) all the Cups—ATP, Laver, Davis— and creates one product. Alas, this is tennis. Say this: the media rights money has kicked in. As members of the winning team, Felix and Denis made more than $500,000 to start off the season.

49. Diving into the mailbag
Know that your notes about Tennis Channel—good, not good, suggestions for improved sock patterns—are read and considered. Gary D. of L.A. asked me to compare it to “60 Minutes” and it gave me a laugh. Here’s the truth serum on Tennis Channel: It’s a scrappy, unfussy, wring-everything-you-can-out-of-your-talent operation, the Jessica Pegula of networks if you will. There is corporate ownership, but zero interference. (Consider this segment.) We like each other a lot. We like tennis a lot. We have a lot of fun. Hopefully that’s conveyed on screen.

50. Best for last?
Hard to imagine doing one of these and not referencing “Serena Williams” and “Roger Federer.” May we see them both again soon.

It is always fun geeking out on tennis with you all. Also, thank editor Chris Almeida and reward him with a follow.