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Serbia's Novak Djokovic plays to fans after win in the Australian Open
By John Pye
Associated Press
Published on Monday, Jan 28, 2008
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA: Novak Djokovic started making peace with the crowd as soon as he lifted the trophy.
After beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (2) Sunday night to win the Australian Open for his first Grand Slam title, Djokovic knew a little public relations was in order.
True, he had kept the Rod Laver Arena crowd in stitches last week with his Maria Sharapova impersonation. But Djokovic also had upset Roger Federer in the semifinals and now had eliminated Tsonga, who was riding a great wave into the title match.
''I know the crowd wanted him to win more,'' Djokovic said. ''That's OK. It's all right. I still love you guys — don't worry. I'm very, very happy that I won my first Grand Slam here, so hopefully we'll see you here on this stage a lot more often.''
Djokovic felt as if he had to
fight two rivals — the fans and his opponent — in beating Federer and Tsonga. He frequently yelled when things went wrong.
''Sometimes, you just can't control your emotions on the court,'' he said. ''I'm still learning. I'm still young.''
Djokovic, 20, of Serbia, is the first man other than No. 2 Rafael Nadal to win a Grand Slam title from Federer since Marat Safin won the 2005 Australian Open.
Djokovic said he was under extreme pressure to defeat Tsonga, an unseeded Frenchman who had beaten four players in the top 14, including Nadal in straight sets in the semifinals.
Tsonga's audacious style, resemblance to Muhammad Ali and magnificent run in only his fifth major made him a popular contender at Melbourne Park. His great tale about his Congolese father witnessing the epic ''Rumble in the Jungle'' heavyweight bout between Ali and George Foreman in 1974 added to the legend.
The underdog story gained momentum when Tsonga's father, Didier, who flew in from France for the match, stood and threw four right hooks to celebrate his son's first-set success.
Djokovic admitted he felt the heat. But he regrouped after the first-set barrage and began to climb back. He did not face a break point in the second and third sets. He staved off one crucial break point in the fourth before dominating the tiebreaker.
''Coming on against a player with nothing to lose — he was going for the shots and he was very dangerous, especially in the first set — I was pretty nervous,'' he said.
Tsonga, so aggressive earlier in the tournament, seemed content to rally from the baseline, especially after getting passed several times. The forehands that whipped past Nadal and kissed the lines were wayward. And he netted some of the soft touch volleys that gave him easy points against the Spaniard.
''I was trying to stay with him because I knew sooner or later, with my style of game, I could get in control of the match,'' Djokovic said.
With Federer only two majors shy of Pete Sampras' record 14 Grand Slam titles, Djokovic said he needed to make the most of any opportunity.
''This match was especially important because I was the favorite and I knew everybody was expecting me to win, so anything but the win was a loss,'' Djokovic said. ''I wanted really to win because I felt my chance. I wanted to win my first Grand Slam. Now things are different.''
Djokovic will remain at No. 3 in the rankings behind Federer and Nadal. Tsonga, ranked 38th coming into the tournament, will move up to No. 18 after advancing past the fourth round for the first time. He thinks he has the game to crack the top 10.
''Not everybody can beat players who I beat,'' he said. ''It's very difficult, and I did it. So, of course, I'm confident now.''
Tsonga was trying to give France its first men's Grand Slam champion since Yannick Noah won at Roland Garros in 1983. Djokovic was certain of the celebrations in his country.
''I can imagine what is happening on the streets of Belgrade and Serbia,'' he said. ''This is just something amazing for us.''
Djokovic and his female compatriots, Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic, reached the semifinals at Melbourne Park, repeating their run at the last French Open. Ivanovic lost Saturday's women's final in straight sets to Sharapova.
''All the players, the girls, Jankovic, Ivanovic, everybody who comes from Serbia,'' he said. ''It's such a small country with not a big tennis tradition.''
Sharapova won her third Grand Slam title without dropping a set in a run that included wins over former No. 1 Lindsay Davenport and three of the top four players.
She ended No. 1 Justine Henin's 32-match winning streak in the quarterfinals, then beat Jankovic in the semis and Ivanovic 7-5, 6-3 for the championship. The victory erased bitter memories of a 6-1, 6-2 loss in the 2007 Australian final.
Sharapova will remain at No. 5, with Henin at No. 1 and Ivanovic overtaking Svetlana Kuznetsova at No. 2.
In doubles, Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram became the first Israeli pair to win a Grand Slam title, beating France's Michael Llodra and Arnaud Clement 7-5 7-6 (4).
Ukraine sisters Alona and Kateryna Bondarenko combined for a 2-6, 6-1, 6-4 win over Victoria Azarenka of Belarus and Shahar Peer of Israel in the women's doubles final.
China's Sun Tiantian combined with Serbia's Nenad Zimonjic to beat Indian pair Sania Mirza and Mahesh Bhupathi 7-6 (4), 6-4 for the mixed doubles title.
The tournament set a record for total attendance for an Australian Open (605,735) and a one-day mark for any Grand Slam (62,885 on Day 4). It also set a record for the latest finish, with Australia's Lleyton Hewitt finishing off 2006 runner-up Marcos Baghdatis at 4:33 a.m. on the first Sunday after starting at 11:47 p.m. Saturday.
Djokovic plans to spend a couple of weeks savoring the title, then get back to work.
''It's not possible that only one tournament is changing the history,'' he said. ''I played amazing tennis here, so I think I absolutely deserved to win, even against (Federer) in the semifinals.''
''Sure, he's going to come back in a big style,'' he added. ''He's still planning to be the best player in the world. We all know how good he is. We're going to see a lot of him, of course, this year.''
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA: Novak Djokovic started making peace with the crowd as soon as he lifted the trophy.
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