Roger came up short in his bid for a 17th grand slam title last night, losing to Djokovic 7-6 (3) 7-5 6-4. He definitely had his chances to take the first set, to even the match in the second set, and push the match into a fourth but Nole played big and bold. Federer was up 5-2 and serving at 5-3 in the second set but only to be denied as Djokovic came back and ultimately was victorious. It will be the second grand slam final in a row for Djokovic (lost to Rafa at 2010 US Open) and he may be favored to win his second grand slam as well.
As for Roger? He played well, and there is not much to worry about after this loss besides that he simply lost. I believe that the entire world has been spoiled for years, especially up to about two years ago, by just how unbelievable and unseen Federer has been. He has clearly transcended the sport and because of it, players like Rafa, Nole, and Andy Murray have risen to the top of the game in the last few years, with Rafa being the distinct breakthrough player.
So its onto next year’s Australian Open for Federer fans but don’t doubt Roger for a bit. For everyone else, keep up with the remainder of the slam down under with the links at the bottom of this post. I suppose it will be some time off this site because Roger likely does not play again until Dubai but I will occasionally post some updates.
Thank you again for visiting. And yes, I received and am replying to all of the 2028 messages you all (fans, visitors, viewers) have sent me (so far) from the Meebo chat in the sidebar to emails, and even some Twitter messages I got.
Final photos are up for the 2011 Australian Open album at 2011 Australian Open album.
Australian Open links:
Official site of the 2011 Australian Open