2020 Australian Open Recap

Kenin’s breakthrough

2020 Australian Open

years, and was just one set away from claiming that elusive major title.

“You were very close to winning it, and you definitely have a lot more time in your career,” Djokovic said to Thiem during the trophy presentation. “I am sure you will get a Grand Slam trophy, more than one.”

Gauff continues to impress

The story of the 2020 Australian Open was young American Sofia Kenin, who hoisted her maiden Grand Slam trophy in dramatic fashion. The 21-year-old came back from a set down to defeat two-time major winner Garbine Muguruza in a thrilling championship match. Long considered a prodigy, Kenin has shown steady results over the last two years which planted the seed for the result that blossomed Down Under.

“It was such a battle and it was very physical,” said Kenin. “I’m on cloud nine right now; I just can’t believe this.”

Djokovic dominant once again While the women’s singles draw featured a first-time winner, the men’s winner was a familiar face. Novak Djokovic added to his resume with his eighth title in Oz, and 17th major overall. And he came to this title in dramatic fashion, coming back from twosets-to-one down to beat Dominic Thiem 6-4, 4-6, 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 in the final.

“Grand Slams are one of the main reasons why I am still competing and still playing a full season, trying to obviously get the historic No. 1,” said Djokovic. “That’s the other big goal. I put myself in this position that is really good at the moment.”

More thiem heartbreak One man’s triumph is another man’s pain. And unfortunately for Austria’s Dominic Thiem, he falls into the latter category once again. Thiem was competing in his third major final, having lost to Rafael Nadal in the French Open finals each of the last two American teenager Coco Gauff continued her impressive play over this last year, showing that her Wimbledon and US Open results from last year were no fluke. Gauff knocked off defending champion Naomi Osaka and reached the fourth round of this year’s Australian Open, as the young American keeps demonstrating her consistency, and maturity.

“I’m definitely going to savor this and continue to build and get better to work for moments like this, moments like that last match,” Gauff said after she fell to Kenin, the eventual champion. “Even today, even though I lost, I still had a lot of fun. I mean, now looking back, I’m not as disappointed anymore.”

Wozniacki says goodbye While Gauff is an example of seeing the beginnings of a promising young career, this year’s Australian Open also gave us the final glimpse into a Hall of Fame career. Former champion Caroline Wozniacki competed in her final tournament as a professional, bringing an end to her decorated career, that saw her reach multiple Grand Slam finals and spend time as the topranked player in the world. The Dane won her first two matches before falling to Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur in the third-round.

By Brian Coleman Takeaways n

“From a little girl with a big dream, to this moment, standing on the court today living out my tennis dream one last time in front of the world,” Wozniacki later tweeted. “It has been everything I could ever have hoped for! The farewell I got today was absolutely incredible.”

Ram earns first men’s doubles title Rajeev Ram won a Grand Slam Men’s Doubles title for the first time in his career, pairing with Great Britain’s Joe Salisbury to defeat the Australian duo of Max Purcell and Luke Saville 6-4, 6- 2 in the finals. Ram won a Mixed Doubles title at last year’s Australian Open, and now has a men’s doubles title to his name as well.

“He doesn’t show it outwardly, but he’s incredibly competitive, especially on the tennis court,” Ram said of his partner. The duo has been playing together for the better part of a year. “His

ability to rise to the occasion is pretty special. Obviously he’s an incredible athlete, too. Those two things for me stick out.”

Muguruza back to grand slam form Spain’s Garbine Muguruza has been an enigma over the last several years. She is a two-time major champion, but outside of the big events, Muguruza doesn’t seem to put together consistent results, and that resulted in her being unseeded for the Australian Open. But Muguruza put it together over the fortnight, knocking off three Top 10 seeds en route to her reaching the first Grand Slam final since she won Wimbledon in 2017. Despite losing the finals in three-sets, her time in Melbourne is a good indicator on what we can expect from Muguruza moving forward.

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Zverev’s best grand slam showing

using his serve as a weapon en route to reaching the semifinals. It was his best result at a Grand Slam, and could be a sign of things to come for Zverev.

The knock on Alex Zverev in recent years has been his performance, or lack thereof, in the world’s four biggest tournaments. He has been a mainstay in the top 10 for the last couple of years and despite back-to-back quarterfinal showings at the French Open, there was a narrative that the young German was unable to come through on the biggest stage. His serve struggles were also a major talking point entering the Australian Open, but he quickly dispelled any of those concerns,

American struggles While Kenin hoisted the women’s singles trophy and Ram won men’s doubles, the Australian Open proved to be a struggle overall for Americans. There was just one woman and one man who reached the quarterfinals, Kenin and Tennys Sandgren, in each draw. As the hard-court season transitions to grass and clay, it will be interesting to see how some of the top Americans fare at the French Open and Wimbledon.

Bellis back on big stage One of the most encouraging and heart-warming storylines to come out of this year’s Australian Open was that of CiCi Bellis’ return. The young American has missed nearly two years with injuries, but returned in the start of 2020 as she embarks on her comeback to the tour. Bellis, still just 20- years-old, reached the third-round Down Under. It was a fantastic result for someone who has missed years due to injury, and just being back out there competing was victory enough for Bellis.

“I think a year ago at this time I didn’t know if I was going to play again, so just being here is so special to me, let alone winning,” she said. “I just feel lucky to be here.”

Brian Coleman is senior editor for Long Island Tennis Magazine. He may be reached by e-mail at BrianC@USPTennis.com

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