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ADELAIDE, Australia — Novak Djokovic made his Australian Open debut when he defeated unseeded Sebastian Korda 6-7(8) 7-6(3) 6-4 on Sunday to win the Adelaide International. He showed no signs of injury that could derail his campaign.
Djokovic worried Open organizers when he said he had been plagued with a tight hamstring after his semi-final against Daniil Medvedev in Adelaide. .
If there were any lingering problems, they were likely revealed in Sunday’s marathon final, which spanned more than three hours and ended with Djokovic winning his 92nd career singles title.
He also won his second Adelaide title 16 years after his first. In 2007, he won the championship at the age of 19.
Djokovic had to save the match and a championship point at 5-6 in Sunday’s second set, completely outstretched by Korda, 22, son of 1998 Australian Open champion Petr Korda. .
We scored a few points in the game. Djokovic held serve to love in his first four service games of the final set, and served after losing a deuce to Korda in the fifth service game.
Djokovic then recovered from 15-40 to 5-4 in Korda’s next service game, scoring four straight points and winning the set in 51 minutes to win the match in 3 hours and 9 minutes.
“I hope everyone enjoys the show tonight. It’s been a great week,” Djokovic said. “Seb had a great tournament and did a great job today.
“I think he was closer to winning than I was today. Just a few shots, a few points.”
Djokovic has at times expressed irritation with this coach, Goran Ivanisevic, who supported him from courtside boxes or protested himself after wasted points.
“I want to thank the team for their patience today in good times and bad. I am grateful for having you.”
His serve was reliable at the start of the first set and he did not concede a point on his first serve until Korda broke him to take a 5-4 lead. Djokovic broke back quickly to bring the set into a tiebreak.
Korda took an early lead and had five set points, but Djokovic saved them all to level the tiebreak at 6-6. He dived in and gave Korda another advantage, allowing the American to take the tiebreak at 10-8.
Djokovic saved 5-6 match points on serve in the second set before being forced to take the set to another tiebreak.
Korda produced some excellent service games, sometimes plaguing Djokovic with his kicks on serve. .
This was preceded by second-seeded Alina Sabalenka, who won her 11th WTA Tour singles title, but was nearly two years behind when she defeated qualifier Linda Noskova 6-2, 7-6(4) in the women’s final. It was my first title.
In doing so, she ended an extraordinary run by 18-year-old Noskova, defeating third-seeded Daria Kasatkina and former Australian Open champion Victoria Arenka in the main draw to reach her first final.
Sabalenka didn’t drop a set all week and looked ready for another comfortable win when she took the first set on Sunday. However, Noskova was much more competitive in the second, holding her serve and putting pressure on Sabalenka’s serve, especially with her powerful backhand return.
“I think I’m a different player now,” Sabalenka said. “Maybe he’s a little smarter and a little calmer on the court. Everything has changed a little bit.
“(Noskova) I would like to congratulate you on a great week.
Sabalenka’s last singles title came in May 2021 in Madrid, but she failed to win the title in 2022 despite reaching three finals.
She qualified for the season-ending WTA Finals in Fort Worth and finished the year ranked fifth after losing to Caroline Garcia in the final.
Sabalenka has now won three tournaments in the first week of the season, following Shenzhen in 2019 and Abu Dhabi in 2021.
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