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Jannik Sinner and Madison Keys are leaving Melbourne with added baggage after being crowned Australian Open champions.
Sinner successfully defended his title and tightened his stranglehold on men’s tennis, while Keys finally fulfilled her teenage promise a month before her 30th birthday.
Here, the PA news agency picks out five things we learned from the year’s first grand slam.
It’s never too late
At 14, Keys seemed destined to be a grand slam champion. At 24, the dream was still very much alive. But, at 29, the American had learned to be at peace with the fact it may never happen. And then it did. Keys not only won the title, she did it by playing brave, first-strike tennis and beating both Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka in matches that went to the wire. Her success should be a shot in the arm for other players who feel their chance has passed.
Murray finds a new role
Whether or not Andy Murray continues to work with Novak Djokovic, it seems likely he will stay in coaching. The Scot brought the same diligence he applied to his playing career to this new role and earned rave reviews from his former rival. Murray has the humility not to want to make it about him – in fact, the exact opposite – and was a calm, encouraging presence in the coaching box. How much time he wants to devote to coaching so early into his playing retirement is a big sticking point, though.
Mixed fortunes for Brits
Jack Draper and Emma Raducanu both produced their best runs at Melbourne Park, reaching the fourth and third rounds, respectively. Draper showed he can fight through five-set battles but at a cost to his troublesome hip, and getting fully fit must be the 23-year-old’s priority. Raducanu had two strong wins but was then blitzed by Swiatek and her serve still needs a lot more work, something that will be more difficult, given the decision of coach Nick Cavaday to step away for health reasons. Jacob Fearnley’s remarkable rise continues and there is no reason he cannot be pushing for the top 50 soon, but Katie Boulter needs to find the right recipe for stepping up on the big stage.
Djokovic feeling his age
Djokovic’s victory over Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-finals was one of the matches of the tournament and proof that the 37-year-old’s tennis is still more than good enough to win best-of-five-set clashes with his biggest rivals. But the physical aspect is just as important and even Djokovic cannot hold back time. Two years ago, he managed to win the tournament despite a hamstring tear. This time, the pain was too great. The Serbian has openly said he only cares about the grand slams and Davis Cup now, but can his body still cope with seven full-length matches against rivals 15 years his junior? Wimbledon appears his best bet of that record-breaking 25th slam title.
The kids are coming
Move over Sinner and Alcaraz, there’s a new next gen. The Italian and the Spaniard will almost certainly rack up plenty more slam titles, but the teenagers coming through are likely to have a big say in men’s tennis over the next few years. Brazil’s Joao Fonseca – only 18 but with a huge game – is the most talked-about talent and he stunned Andrey Rublev, but Czech Jakub Mensik and American Learner Tien, both 19, went further in the tournament. There will be four teenagers in the ATP top 100 on Monday compared to just one in the women’s game.
