The Russian Daniil Medvedev and the Italian Jannik Sinner are the two tennis players who have finally earned the honor of competing for the Australian Open trophy, in the first grand final of the year. The Muscovite earned his pass by defeating the German player Alexander Zverev after five very hard-fought sets. The latter suffered a very tough defeat on Friday, once again, after he had led on the scoreboard by two sets to zero. At 26 years old, the glory of being crowned champion in a Grand Slam tournament continues to elude him.
In the other semifinal, the young transalpine player separated Novak Djokovic from the possibility of chasing his eleventh prize in Melbourne; a defeat that never ceases to surprise, not least because the Serbian is so unaccustomed to it. It must be said in favor of the young finalist that his game had been announcing many possibilities of winning a big one, if not today, surely very soon.
The defending champion failed much more than usual and, probably for this same reason, failed to find the right tactic to dismantle his opponent. He entered into ball exchanges in the center of the court, but Sinner seemed, at all times, much more solid. Only the fighting ability of the current number one and the fact that he is an extraordinary champion allowed him to make up the result of the match. After losing the first two sets by a resounding 6-1, 6-2 – in the subsequent press conference he called this match his worst match in a Grand Slam tournament – and because of that fighting spirit that he mentioned before, he managed to show himself more aggressive and make it difficult for his rival. This time his efforts were not enough to win the victory but, once again, he demonstrated why for so many years he has remained at the top of world tennis. Djokovic knows how to play and fight like almost no one knows how to do in the most unfavorable situations. I have no doubt that we will continue to see him in the final rounds of major tournaments.
I must point out, still speaking of a match from the previous round, the disappointment that we Spaniards have experienced in not seeing our player Carlos Alcaraz, who, as is known, was eliminated against Alexander Zverev, progress towards that final position. As is more common than it should be, some voices have quickly emerged in our country questioning his tennis ability and his statements during the tournament.
In the world of competition, victory is as normal as defeat. In fact, one never exists without the other. All athletes, without exception, from Leo Messi to Tiger Woods or Roger Federer have suffered them. At 20 years old our great player, these setbacks are more than logical. The level of any athlete always oscillates between two margins: his best and his worst level. And this range is manifested in its multiple variables when the two contenders are on the court. Even understanding that the highest point of the Murcian tennis player is somewhat higher than that of the German, the small difference does not ensure victory if, as happened, Sasha she would end up giving her best version and Carlos, on the other hand, would distance himself somewhat from her.
Is this worrying, as the most critical and, of course, the least reliable voices said? Surely not. Not at all.
It is true that in this first Open we have seen our tennis player somewhat less solid than usual, but it is also true that, despite this, he played a worthy quarterfinal. Although he had a bad day and a clearly adverse score, he left evidence, emulating the Serbian player, of his tenacity and fighting spirit. All you have to do is consider his example from this last match along with his enormous tennis quality to know that we will continue to see him at the top of our sport for a long time.
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