Roger Federer has made another entry in the record books: The Swiss superstar won the Australian Open final in 3:02 hours with 6:2,6:7 (5:7), 6:3,3:6,6:1 against Croatian Marin Cilic and clinched his 20th place after winning five sets. Grand Slam title.
From Ulrike Weinrich from Melbourne
Federer had once again shown himself to be extremely dominant in his mission of “defending the title down under” until the final. The 36-year-old left only two sets on his way to prank number 20 – both against Cilic. The dream finale and the new edition of last year’s final did not materialize because top seed Rafael Nadal (Spain) had to give up his quarter-finals against Cilic due to a hip flexor injury in the fifth set. Federer and French Open record champion Nadal had divided the Grand Slam trophies last season.
In front of 15,000 spectators in the sold-out Rod Laver Arena, Federer made a dream start. In his first break in the first game, however, Cilic, who was seeded sixth in his third big final, played a decisive role. The Croatian hit a slight overhead ball into the net. The Maestro had no mercy and was 4-0 in front after only twelve minutes, Cilic had only scored three points so far. It was not until immediately afterwards that the 29-year-old won his first game. On the official Twitter account of the Australian Open, due to the initial superiority of the world rankings runner-up, it was said:”Roger plays as if he were training in his garden in Switzerland.”
After only 24 minutes, the top favourite went into the opening round when Cilic missed a return. Federer scored twice as many points as his opponent in the first set. The stadium’s roof had been closed before the start of the match due to the high outside temperatures (38 degrees Celsius) and the entry into force of the so-called Extreme Heat Policy (EHP). The “hall conditions” were an advantage for the eight-time Wimbledon winner.
Nevertheless, Cilic found the match better. In a 5:4 lead, he missed a break point which was also a set point. But in the tiebreak, the 1.98-meter-hen from Monte Carlo kept a cool head and evened out. Federer took the serve to 4:2 from his opponent and got himself part three of the showdown with his 19. Ace. But the decision had not yet been made. And this despite the fact that Federer led 3:1 in the fourth set.
Cilic fought her way back and took the serve off the audience’s darling, who is now suddenly serving poorly, twice. As a result, the Croatian was able to save himself in the final set. However, the now highly concentrated Federer made a tailor-made comeback there when he managed to reach a decisive 3-0 lead. The audience celebrated him with “Let’s go Roger”calls. The lead brought the former number one to the finish line – and again lived up to its reputation as the “Greatest of all time”.
It was Federer’s ninth victory in the tenth duel with “Chila”. In 2014, the Croatian had won his only match against the Swiss in the semi-finals of the US Open – and shortly afterwards won his first and so far only Grand Slam title in New York. In the 2017 Wimbledon final, Cilic Federer had to bow in three sets after the outsider could only finish the match with tears because of a blister on his foot.
Despite his defeat, Cilic climbs to third place in the world rankings – he has never been that high on the ATP best list. Federer, however, is only the second player after Australian Ken Rosewell, who managed to secure a third major crown at the age of over 35. Before the finals, the father of four had emphasized that the 20th place in the overall standings would be a great success. title on Grand Slam level would be something “very special and unimaginable”.
The finale had a memorable history, as Federer and Cilic had met by chance on holiday in the Maldives in November 2017,”At first we didn’t want to disturb each other. Then, after two days, Marin sent a text message saying that we could meet,”said the FedExpress:” I wrote back, sure, let me know if you want to hit balls. I wanted to keep my game rhythm a little bit.”
The two of them hit twice 45 minutes. Just as relaxed as holidaymakers – without coaches, without pressure:”That was funny”, the Swiss said. We had a few drinks together, and I met Marin’s fiancée:”They ate cake, laughed and had fun together:” That’s how I got to know the person behind the player a little better,”said titleholder Federer after his final move into the Happy Slam.