vanioMan
Legend
On the match 
1. Pre-match - I saw many people claim that Rafa is the favourite, but I didn't really see it that way. Sure, he's the man at RG, but he was way too shaky in the previous rounds for me to really be confident ahead of the SF. Djokovic looked very focused and dangerous so I knew that it will be tough. I knew that Rafa had extra gears but you cannot be underwhelming at one point and then suddenly peak a few minutes later. Rafa was way on and off (mostly off) and this usually is costly against opponents who play well. So before the match I saw it as 50-50.
2. The match - IMO apart from set 3 the level of play was nothing special or great. The drama was, though. Both were very nervous - Rafa a bit more. His serve really failed him and his BH was poor for most of the match. He barely hit any great BHs. I feel like he never really settled during the match nor did he have long patches of playing great. No excuses, though. He lost fair and square. And as much as he has improved his serve over the years, it's still not giving him enough free/easy points.
Djokovic really impressed me. He was not perfect by any means, but he always kept his focus and played so well in the important moments. No implosions or breakdows. Very solid mentally. IMO the FH CC won him the match. That shot caused all sorts of trouble for Rafa and his BH. I was just waiting for Novak to miss more of those shots but he never really did. His ROS was also amazing and it kept troubling Nadal throughout the whole match. Fully deserved win.
3. What's next - I didn't bother to read the forums before writing this (there's usually too much BS and many users tend to overreact after such matches), so perhaps there are posts such as "Nadal is done" or "Novak is the GOAT". Well, neither is true yet. Rafa will continue to play and try his best until he can no more. So will Novak. Never be quick to jump to conclusions with these two. Just enjoy what they bring to the table because in a few years they might be both retired. But for now, neither of them is done.
Also, nothing is given nor 100% predictable, so don't be too certain about stuff. Last year when Rafa won #20 I said that this might very well be his last slam. Today Novak wins, but there is still a final to be played against a very in-form young opponent. And even Novak might not win another slam again. Tennis, like life, is unpredictable. So just try to enjoy it as much as possible
On a personal level I'd like to say that this match was quite exhausting to watch and I might skip such occasions in the future I've watched so many dramatic/intense/epic tennis matches over the past 10 years and I feel like it takes a toll on me these days. I felt emotionally drained by the end of it and wasn't even that sad (just a bit) that Rafa lost. I felt the same after USO 2019 (F) and AO 2021 (QF). Personal life/age are taking over and I cannot invest that much into the sport anymore. Still, no regrets for watching this one
I don't post much these days but here you go, my quick thoughts scribbled at 2:30 AM with my eyes half-closed. Congrats to all Nole fans on a special performance and a very deserved victory. Never liked Novak as a player, never will, but he's the man tonight. So cheers to you. Open a cold beer or a bottle of vodka and celebrate Like Novak might do while listening to Kamelia
1. Pre-match - I saw many people claim that Rafa is the favourite, but I didn't really see it that way. Sure, he's the man at RG, but he was way too shaky in the previous rounds for me to really be confident ahead of the SF. Djokovic looked very focused and dangerous so I knew that it will be tough. I knew that Rafa had extra gears but you cannot be underwhelming at one point and then suddenly peak a few minutes later. Rafa was way on and off (mostly off) and this usually is costly against opponents who play well. So before the match I saw it as 50-50.
2. The match - IMO apart from set 3 the level of play was nothing special or great. The drama was, though. Both were very nervous - Rafa a bit more. His serve really failed him and his BH was poor for most of the match. He barely hit any great BHs. I feel like he never really settled during the match nor did he have long patches of playing great. No excuses, though. He lost fair and square. And as much as he has improved his serve over the years, it's still not giving him enough free/easy points.
Djokovic really impressed me. He was not perfect by any means, but he always kept his focus and played so well in the important moments. No implosions or breakdows. Very solid mentally. IMO the FH CC won him the match. That shot caused all sorts of trouble for Rafa and his BH. I was just waiting for Novak to miss more of those shots but he never really did. His ROS was also amazing and it kept troubling Nadal throughout the whole match. Fully deserved win.
3. What's next - I didn't bother to read the forums before writing this (there's usually too much BS and many users tend to overreact after such matches), so perhaps there are posts such as "Nadal is done" or "Novak is the GOAT". Well, neither is true yet. Rafa will continue to play and try his best until he can no more. So will Novak. Never be quick to jump to conclusions with these two. Just enjoy what they bring to the table because in a few years they might be both retired. But for now, neither of them is done.
Also, nothing is given nor 100% predictable, so don't be too certain about stuff. Last year when Rafa won #20 I said that this might very well be his last slam. Today Novak wins, but there is still a final to be played against a very in-form young opponent. And even Novak might not win another slam again. Tennis, like life, is unpredictable. So just try to enjoy it as much as possible
On a personal level I'd like to say that this match was quite exhausting to watch and I might skip such occasions in the future
I've watched so many dramatic/intense/epic tennis matches over the past 10 years and I feel like it takes a toll on me these days. I felt emotionally drained by the end of it and wasn't even that sad (just a bit) that Rafa lost. I felt the same after USO 2019 (F) and AO 2021 (QF). Personal life/age are taking over and I cannot invest that much into the sport anymore. Still, no regrets for watching this one I don't post much these days but here you go, my quick thoughts scribbled at 2:30 AM with my eyes half-closed. Congrats to all Nole fans on a special performance and a very deserved victory. Never liked Novak as a player, never will, but he's the man tonight. So cheers to you. Open a cold beer or a bottle of vodka and celebrate
Like Novak might do while listening to Kamelia
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