It was a successful start to the 2016 season for European players, with all of the trophies in the major categories at this year’s Australian Open lifted by European hands. Serbia’s Novak Djokovic maintained his stranglehold on the tournament, the number one ranking and his rivalry with Andy Murray by claiming a solid victory. Meanwhile, in the women’s draw Germany’s Angelique Kerber ensured that compatriot Steffi Graf’s stand-alone record of 22 Grand Slam titles would last at least a little longer by notching up her first major win and leaving Serena Williams wanting on 21.
Yet again, Murray found himself so close yet so far. This is his fifth loss in an Australian Open final, with his first coming against Roger Federer in 2010,
while all his other losses have come against the mighty Serb. Djokovic gave out a masterclass in the first set and a half, demonstrating pure skill and talent. Racing out to a 5-0 lead in the first set, Murray was able to get his name on the board with more solid play. Murray worked his way into the next two sets, but Djokovic held firm keeping a low unforced error count and later admitted that the sets “were decided on a few points” - key points that went the Serb’s way. Murray served two double faults in the third set tie-break, which the Serb wasted no time in taking advantage of. In the end, Djokovic had all the answers to seal a 6-2 7-5 7-6 victory and to make it 6 wins from as many finals appearances in Melbourne. This victory now ties him with Australian great Roy Emerson, who also won 6 titles here and also raises his grand slam tally to 11, just one shy of Emerson, three of Nadal and five behind Federer on the all-time list.
Angelique Kerber played the match of her life while playing in her first grand slam final. After coming back from match point down in the first round and “with one leg on the plane to Germany,” Kerber had nothing to lose. There were no signs of nerves from the German - on the contrary, as she ran everything down and played with some of her own power and precision. In fact, it was the American who seemed nervous, handing Kerber almost a set’s worth of unforced errors (23) in the first set alone. Kerber’s never-say-die attitude and hustling kept her in many points and even led to her making some amazing passing shots before taking the first set 6-4. Williams was exasperated by her uncharacteristically weak performance at the net, placing many of her approach shots short or hitting wayward, off-balanced volleys. Champion that she is, Serena powered back to grind out the second set and take it 6-3, but was unable to fight back from a 2-5 deficit in the third. Kerber kept running and kept the pressure on eventually taking the set 6-4, falling to the ground almost in joy as another Williams volley sailed long. Kerber now moves up to a career high ranking of number two and is the first German since the great Steffi Graf to win a grand slam title. It is precisely that name of the latter that will still float around and keep popping up until Serena is able to get past the #22 hoodoo, as many expect.
In doubles action, the Swiss Miss keeps showing that she has still got the touch and flair. Martina Hingis & India’s Sania Mirza claimed another grand slam title together, beating Czech pair Andrea Hlavackova & Lucie Hradecka 7-6 6-3. The number one ranked pair now seems unstoppable, surging even further away from the rest of the pack and have now amassed more than double the amount of points of their nearest rivals in the rankings. The men’s doubles saw Andy’s brother Jamie Murray team with Brazilian Bruno Soares to come from behind and win the final 2-6 6-4 7-5 against Daniel Nestor of Canada and the Czech Republic’s Radek Stepanek, a first major title for either player. Soares later won yet another accolade, teaming with Russian Elena Vesnina to add the mixed doubles final.
From the juniors' perspective, there were some mixed results for European players. The grand slam of Asia-Pacific held true in the boys draw, with local player Oliver Anderson defeating Jurabek Karimov from Uzbekistan for the title, but there was an all-European affair in the girls draw, as Belorussian Vera Lapko beat Slovakia’s Tereza Mihalikova. More victories came for the Australians in the boys’ doubles as Alex de Minaur & Blake Ellis defeated Lukas Klein of Slovakia & reigning European 16 & Under Champion Patrik Rikl of the Czech Republic. The European girls once again dominated in the doubles, with Mihalikova combining with Russian Anna Kalinskaya to easily down the Ukrainian pairing of Dayana Yastremska & Anastasia Zarytska.
European tennis kicks off 2016 strongly with victories for Djokovic and a runner-up position for Murray in Australia. Roger Federer has stated that he is playing tennis for enjoyment and so we can expect to continue to enjoy his artful brand of tennis for a while longer yet, while Rafa Nadal’s early loss belied signs that his tennis is getting back on track. Although Serena Williams is currently perched well above the rest in the rankings, the last two major tournaments have shown that she is clearly not unbeatable. The feisty Kerber and the nifty and solid Agnieszka Radwanska are now in the top 5. Along with the resurgent Victoria Azarenka and the power of Garbiñe Muguruza, there are high hopes for more European Grand Slam titles in 2016.