US Open Tennis Final Review: Novak Djokovic Beats Rafael Nadal in Thrilling Match

After two weeks of fierce tennis and tense rain delays, Novak Djokovic and Samantha Stosur emerged from the 2011 US Open bearing hard-earned trophies. Whereas all eyes were on Serena Williams rather than Stosur in the women's field, Djokovic, as the newly minted World No. 1, was under immense pressure to perform well. Here's how things went down during a very dramatic tournament. With crisp groundstrokes and flawless movement, the Djoker has always been a joy to watch, but eighteen months ago he was a distant World No. 3 renowned for retiring-mid match due to fatigue or cramping. Improved physical conditioning helped him rise up and contend with Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, but it has been his attitude which has helped his steal the No. 1 ranking. His new-found confidence was on display during his semi-final tussle with Federer. Down a match point in the fifth set, Djokovic blasted back a service-return winner, taking a chance and believing in his abilities. Federer later called this shot €œlucky€, no doubt a little sour after a tough 6-7, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-5 loss, marking the second US Open in a row where the Serb came back from match-point down to defeat Federer. Chalking up a 'W' would have meant the FedExpress would have alone kept Djokovic to two Grand Slam titles in 2011, but his season will instead be remembered as one of disappointing losses and the first year since 2002 in which he failed to bag a Slam. Having lost five in a row to Djokovic, Nadal was doggedly determined for a reversal of fortunes in the final. The Spaniard broke serve to go up 2-0 in each of the first two sets before Djokovic calmly stormed back to take them both. In the third, Nadal finally began to push Djokovic behind the baseline and dominate with huge lefty forehand to steal the 84 minute set in a tie-break. But Djokovic reasserted control from the outset of the fourth set, out-muscling the muscle-man of tennis 6-2, 6-4, 6-7, 6-1 and winning the hearts of the crowd by sporting a New York fire department cap to commemorate the ten-year anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attacks. The four-hour plus match was of the highest quality and has already been compared to the classic 2008 Wimbledon final between Nadal and Federer. The Djoker now owns a staggering 14,720 ATP ranking points, (more than I have personally ever seen) and his heavenly 2011 season, which includes three Grand Slam titles, six straight victories over World No. 2 Rafael Nadal and a 66-2 win-loss record, is stacking up to be one of the best by any man in history. Stosur's breakthrough to win this year's US Open was more a fulfilment of promise than a total surprise. The unassuming 27-year-old Aussie rose to the spotlight last year when she reached the French Open final, knocking out the then World No. 1 Serena Williams and four-time champion Justine Henin along the way. Stosur crumbled in the French Open final, and like so many women on the WTA tour, struggled with consistency after her first big splash. A year down the track, and with few tennis observers expecting much from her, Stosur played the best tennis of her life to win her first Grand Slam title. Stosur battled past two wily veterans of the tour in record-book matches - Nadia Petrova in the third round (the longest ever US Open women's match) and Maria Kirilenko in the fourth round (the longest ever tie-break), before knocking out the tournament's No. 2 seed and returning finalist Vera Zvonareva 6-3, 6-3. In the semis, Stosur was tested by Germany's Angelique Kerber but eventually ended the dream run of the World No. 92 to set up a championship match with Serena. Coming into the final, Serena was riding an 18-match winning streak and appeared to be back to her fearsome best. Her semi-final clash with World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki was hyped as the match-up of the summer and a test of the legitimacy of Wozniacki's place atop the rankings. Serena played flat, punctuating ball to crush Wozniacki 6-2, 6-4 and make the Dane's revered defensive skills irrelevant. Stosur was expected to the play the proverbial lamb to the Williams slaughter house, as history proves when Serena enters a Slam final she usually wins it (well, thirteen times out of sixteen finals). This final, however, was all Stosur. The Aussie hit 20 winners to just 12 unforced errors, served harder and more consistently than Serena, moved better during rallies and kept her cool even as Serena aggressively argued with the umpire. Stosur wrapped up one of the biggest upsets in recent WTA tennis with a heavy off-forehand which Serena could not retrieve, a concise 6-2, 6-3 victory. It will be interesting to see whether Stosur has truly learnt to deal with heightened pressure, something sure to be tested when she plays in front of home crowds at next January's Australian Open as a member of the elite Grand Slam club.