Searching for inspiration when he was down two sets and facing triple break point, with his prospects of winning a record 21st Grand Slam title almost shot, Rafael Nadal thought back to some of his most difficult defeats.
A renowned right-to-the-end competitor, Nadal dug deep in that critical moment and won the next four points to survive the immediate threat from Daniil Medvedev. Minutes later, he held for 3-3 in the third set and swung the momentum of the Australian Open final around.
Nadal eventually did get to 21 first, setting the men’s record for Grand Slam singles titles with a dramatic 2-6, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5 comeback victory that lasted 5 hours, 24 minutes and finished early Monday morning.
The 35-year-old Spaniard now has one more major title than Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, his longtime rivals in the so-called Big Three.
He was the only one of the three who had an opportunity to claim the record solo in Australia.
Federer is recovering from knee surgery, and Djokovic was deported from Australia on the eve of the tournament because he wasn’t vaccinated against COVID-19.
It’s all history now that Nadal has become just the fourth man to win all four of the sport’s major titles at least twice.
“I was repeating to myself during the whole match, ‘I lost a lot of times here having chances, sometimes I was a little bit unlucky,'” Nadal said. “I just wanted to keep believing until the end.”
“Tonight has been unforgettable. I feel very lucky.”
Nadal was broken when serving for the championship for the first time at 5-4 in the fifth set, but he made no mistake two games later, converting the first of his championship points.
Taking everything into account, “the scenario, the momentum,” he said, “without a doubt probably the biggest comeback of my tennis career.
He added, “The most unexpected. And most surprising, I think, for everyone.” Federer and Djokovic were watching, from a distance, and both used social media messages to offer congratulations to Nadal for breaking their three-way tie atop the men’s Grand Slam standings.
