Did you watch last weekend’s Australian Open men’s final? WHAT A MATCH! Rafa Nadal won his 21st Grand Slam in a five-set thriller. I didn’t expect Nadal to pull off this comeback. In the first two sets, Medvedev was dominating, and Rafa seemed nervous and was missing more than usual. But he did it. How? Here are 5 key elements that turned out to be crucial in this match:

  • The Crowd Supported Rafa
    The energy from the crowd makes a big difference in tight matches. When every point is contested, that extra boost from fans cheering for Rafa had an impact on both players. In his post-match press conference, Daniil admitted how much the crowd affected him.

  • Rafa Used the Short Slice
    In the middle of the match, one tactical adjustment Rafa made was to use the short slice more frequently. Since Medvedev prefers playing from behind the baseline, Rafa broke the rhythm by forcing him to come inside the court with these short slices. At first, Daniil tried coming to the net and lost valuable points, but as he adjusted by avoiding the net, Rafa lured him in and won some crucial points. I’m not just talking about the score here, but how those points were won—Rafa managed to win points that Medvedev should have won on paper simply by hitting one extra shot. Those points are mentally tough to lose.

  • Rafa Employed the Drop Shot
    After his serve, Rafa occasionally exploited the fact that Medvedev was positioned far behind the baseline by hitting a drop shot to force him to run forward. This not only won some important points but also created doubt in Medvedev’s mind and forced him to hesitate whenever Rafa used his slice backhand.

  • Rafa Refused to Lose
    Perhaps the most important element: even when down 0-40 at 2-3, Rafa never stopped believing and never gave up. If I could sum up this final in one word, it would be resilience. Rafa loves the fight and has trained his entire life for moments like these. He embraced the challenge and took his shot.

  • Rafa Was Physically Stronger
    Despite appearing to struggle physically at times earlier in the tournament, in this final it was Medvedev who looked fatigued, not Rafa. The Russian required assistance from his physio several times, and his energy level gradually declined over the last three sets. In general, five-set matches involve peaks and valleys in energy, but not this time—Rafa maintained his physical strength throughout.

What did YOU think of the Australian Open final? Are there any key points you would add to this list? I hope to watch more matches like this soon!

by Federico Coppini
https://www.coppinifedericoacademy.com/