From cricketers to football stars, tennis legends to a string of current and former sportspersons - all showered praise on Rafael Nadal after the Spaniard won the men's singles title at the Australian Open on Sunday. Nadal defeated a spirited Daniil Medvedev in a five-set thriller to claim a record-breaking 21st men's singles Grand Slam, surpassing Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic in the process. The marathon duel had everyone on the edge of their seats, with Nadal winning 2-6, 6-7(5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5. Medvedev started brilliantly to take a two-set lead, but Nadal proved once again why he is regarded as one of the best tennis players to have ever played the sport as he won the next three sets to script history as the most decorated male player in terms of Grand Slam titles .
The Australian Open Twitter handle captured the moment as Nadal celebrated the win with a caption that said: "Forever a fighter #AusOpen #AO2022 @RafaelNadal."
Dinesh Karthik wrote: "What a match and what a man. It looked like a straight set blowout the way Medvedev was playing. But champions never give up. One of his best comebacks ever . Congrats @RafaelNadal."
"One month and a half ago, I didn't know if I was going to be able to be back on the tour playing tennis again," Nadal said in his post-match speech. "And today, I am here in front of all of you having this trophy with me and you really don't know how much I fought to be here. I can't thank you enough for all the support that I received since I arrived here."
Nadal was sidelined with a recurring foot injury since last May, even having to undergo an operation that left him on crutches just four months ago. Then, in December 2021, Nadal suffered from a breakthrough case of COVID-19. Following Nadal's first-round victory at the 2022 Australian Open, he told Eurosport Spain: "A month and a half ago I didn't know if I would play tennis again at a professional level due to various factors, including the problems I've had with my foot and with COVID."
This was the second Grand Slam meeting for Medvedev and Nadal, who are establishing an epic intergenerational rival. The pair faced each other in another final, at the 2019 US Open, which was also a five-set match in Nadal's favor. Medvedev, 25, has a near-identical playing approach as Nadal, returning far behind the baseline and covering the court with impressive speed. On paper, Medvedev holds the advantage as a better hard court player whereas Nadal is known to be more dominant on clay court. At 6 feet, 6 inches, Medvedev also sports a massive serve and impenetrable defense.
Medvedev was aiming to follow his 2021 US Open title with a consecutive Grand Slam win and had another chance to play spoiler to history. In the 2021 US Open final, Medvedev thwarted Djokovic's bid for the calendar Grand Slam and Grand Slam No. 21. But, beating Djokovic and Nadal in back-to-back Grand Slam finals is no easy task. In fact, Federer and Stan Wawrinka are the only players that have beaten both Djokovic and Nadal in Grand Slam finals.
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