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FRENCH OPEN TENNIS

TENNIS

Wawrinka beats Djokovic for second major title

Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka won his first French Open championship and second Grand Slam title on Sunday by vanquishing world number one Noval Djokovic in four sets.

Wawrinka beats Djokovic for second major title
Photo: AFP

The 30-year-old Lausanne native  claimed a famous 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 victory to secure his second career major after the 2014 Australian Open.
   
It ended world number one Djokovic's bid to become only the eighth man to secure a career Slam as he slumped to his third defeat in a Roland Garros final in four years.
   
At 30, Wawrinka became the oldest champion in Paris since Andres Gomez in 1990 after just his fourth win in 21 meetings against the Serb.
   
Sunday's shock defeat, meanwhile, was only Djokovic's third in 44 outings in 2015 and ended his 28-match win streak.

“It's really hard to believe but it has finally happened,” said Wawrinka, who fired 60 winners past the Serb.
   
“It was the match of my life,” the Swiss said.

“But bravo to Novak, it's a great challenge, the biggest one to play him,” he said.
   
“It's a special moment for me.”

“It's hard for me to speak right now,” said Djokovic who was in tears on the presentation podium.
   
“I'd like to say well done to Stan,” he said.

Djokovic said the Swiss “has a great heart and I have all respect for him — he is a deserving winner.”

He aded: “But I'd like to say I will be back next year and I will try again.”
   
Sunday's shock defeat was only Djokovic's third in 44 outings in 2015 and ended his 28-match win streak.
   
It was also his eighth loss in 16 finals at the majors.
   
Djokovic, playing in his 16th Grand Slam final to Wawrinka's second, had the Swiss player under siege in the first set.
   
Eighth-seeded Wawrinka had to save break points in the opening game — which featured a 39-shot rally — and the fifth.
   
But the world number one broke through for a 4-3 lead when Wawrinka served up a double fault.
   
The battling Swiss saved two set points in the 10th game — one after a botched forehand put-away by Djokovic — and then carved out a first break opportunity.
   
That was swiftly saved and the Serb gobbled up the opener after 43 minutes, celebrating with a mighty, arena-shaking roar.
   
Wawrinka cranked up the forehand winners early in the second set but was unable to convert two break points in the fourth game as Djokovic's renowned powers of recovery made him an intimidating target to pass.
   
Wawrinka, who had knocked compatriot Roger Federer out in the quarterfinals, saw another break point disappear in the sixth game.
   
In the eighth, it was the same story as Djokovic saved another break point causing Wawrinka to violently smash his racquet into the net in frustration.
   
But he wasn't to be denied as Djokovic surrendered the set in the 10th game with a wild backhand, collecting a warning for destroying his racquet in the Paris clay.
   
Djokovic was playing for the third day in succession having needed five sets to beat Andy Murray in the semifinals.
   
He looked suddenly jaded and unplugged, fighting off three break opportunities in the second game of the third set.
   
The Serb dropped serve again to trail 4-2 and when he carved out a break point in the next game it was his first such morsel since the seventh game of the opener.
   
It was no surprise when Wawrinka wrapped up the set in the ninth game with Djokovic having no answer to his opponent's lethal battery of down the line backhands and pinpoint accurate forehand winners.
   
Djokovic found a late lease of life for a break at 2-0 and held for 3-0 in the fourth set.
   
But back stormed Wawrinka, retrieving the break on the back of a 30-stroke rally before Djokovic saved two more break points to go to 4-3.
   
In a rollercoaster fourth set, the Swiss saved three break points in the eighth game and on the back of three of probably his finest ever backhands broke for 5-4.
   
And it was another textbook backhand that won him the title on a second match point.

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ROGER FEDERER

Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?

Roger Federer is talking optimistically about returning to his "highest level" after knee surgery, but does tennis have to start adjusting to a future without the Swiss star?

Is this the end of the road for Swiss tennis legend Roger Federer?
Is it the end of the line for Roger? Photo: Martin BUREAU / AFP

The 20-time Grand Slam winner announced on Wednesday that he would be sidelined until 2021 after his second operation in a matter of months.

Federer remains upbeat, tweeting: “I plan to take the necessary time to be 100 percent ready to play at my highest level.”

In some ways 2020 is a good season to miss after the coronavirus ravaged the tennis schedule. Writing Federer off in the past has proved dangerous.

He returned from a six-month injury lay-off to claim the Australian Open in 2017, winning his eighth Wimbledon crown later that year.

But he will be 40 in 2021 and is now heading into uncharted territory.

Despite his groaning trophy cabinet, there are two factors that will motivate Federer to keep going — the risk of losing his grip on the men's Grand Slam title record and a missing Olympics singles gold medal.

Rafael Nadal has 19 majors, just one shy of Federer's mark and Djokovic has 17.

Spain's Nadal will be fancied to draw level with Federer at the French Open, rescheduled for September, while few would bet against Djokovic winning in New York weeks earlier.

In April, Federer said he was “devastated” when Wimbledon was cancelled for the first time since World War II. Last year he fell agonisingly short at the All England Club, failing to convert two championship points on his own serve against Djokovic.

The Wimbledon grass probably remains his best chance of adding to his Grand Slam collection — he has not won the US Open since 2008 and his only title at Roland Garros came in 2009.

Even though Federer has slipped from the very pinnacle of the game, he is still a major threat to Nadal and Djokovic.

'Golden' ambitions

Last year, the world number four had a 53-10 win-loss record and he reached the semi-finals at the Australian Open in January in his only tournament this year.

Federer, who is still six ATP titles short of Jimmy Connors' all-time record of 109, has one glaring omission from his CV — the Olympic title.

The Swiss won doubles gold in Beijing in 2008 with compatriot Stan Wawrinka but lost in the singles final to Andy Murray in London four years later.

The postponed Tokyo Games will almost certainly be Federer's last opportunity to complete a career “golden” Grand Slam — he will turn 40 on the day of the closing ceremony next year.

Tennis will feel the loss of the elegant Federer keenly when he walks off the court for the last time.

Djokovic and Nadal have been the dominant forces in recent years but the Swiss remains the biggest draw and last month topped Forbes' list of the world's highest-earning athletes.

His last appearance on court was in front of nearly 52,000 fans — touted by organisers as a world record for tennis — at a charity match against Nadal in Cape Town in February.

Federer is nearly always the crowd favourite wherever he plays and has proved a perfect ambassador for the sport since he won his first Grand Slam title in 2003.

He certainly expects to be back and competitive next year.

“I will be missing my fans and the tour dearly but I will look forward to seeing everyone back on tour at the start of the 2021 season,” he tweeted.

The avalanche of support from his adoring fans showed they would miss him too, but they will have to get used to a time when he is gone for good.

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