It is the third consecutive Slam on hard courts after the Australian Open and the US Open last year, which will see Jannik Sinner as finalist and undisputed ruler, on this surface.
The Italian tennis player earned the title defense in Melbourne thanks to the success in three sets against Ben Shelton. A very complicated first set, won in the tie-break after allowing the opponent to serve for the set, and two other sets in control. Thus the ATP number 1 won his 20th match in a row in the Majors on this surface, in two and a half hours.
Jim Courier, in the interview on the court, questioned the Italian about that set obtained after over an hour of battle.
"I have no idea how he did it, it was a very tough and crucial set. Today in my opinion he didn't serve as well as he wanted to. We responded better than we served. The first set is very important, it gives you a bit of confidence because we were both a bit tense. I'm happy with how I handled the emotions, the crowd was extraordinary, thank you as always. I'm very happy to be in the final again," explained Sinner.
In the last games of the match, Jannik suffered from some physical discomfort, asking the physiotherapist to massage his two quadriceps (especially the right one) during the change of sides.
"A few small cramps, there was a bit of tension. He also suffered a bit, I tried to move him as much as possible. These matches can also get longer. 2 and a half hours for 3 sets is not a little, I'm happy to have closed in three," told the Italian.
Situation handled like a champion, accelerating the exchanges and quickly filing the case with a second break (from 3-2, when it happened, Shelton did not win any more games - ed.).
On the final against Alexander Zverev, the Italian analyzed: "It will be a difficult match, we have had close matches in the past, anything can happen. He is an incredible player and he is trying to win his first Slam. There will be a lot of tension, Sunday is always a special day in these tournaments."
Melbourne, in 2022, was the tournament that made the Italian change teams, with the arrival of Simone Vagnozzi and then Darren Cahill.
"All the coaches I've had have done a great job. It was a difficult moment when I decided to change, but I had made important choices even when I was 13. Now I have a fantastic team that has allowed me to become a different player. My coaches are two different ones, Darren as a player had reached around the top 30, Simone was 161 in the world. He also said when he was playing that he wanted to become a great coach, and he succeeded!
We are not only a team that works together, we are also a family. Darren will have his last season as a coach and I'm happy that we will have a chance to fight for the title again. The season is still long, but it's nice that it happens here. I also don't want to forget my physiotherapist and the athletic trainer, otherwise they get offended," he added.
