Rafael Nadal has become the most successful man in tennis history by winning the Australian Open and his 21st Grand Slam title.
He took on Daniil Medvedev in a gruelling five-hour and 24-minute marathon to clinch the trophy.
Most of the build-up focused on the historic significance of the Spaniard bidding for his 21st Grand Slam but he found himself under pressure from the start.
He saved two break points in a long third game but was then broken to love in the fifth as Medvedev, who was booed onto court by a section of the crowd, proved the steadier from the baseline.
Successive double faults then contributed to a second straight break and Medvedev served out the set 6-2.
Nadal began to play more offensively in the second set and twice managed to break the Medvedev serve.The match was temporarily halted when an intruder made their way onto the court, waving a banner and jumping down from the crowd.
He was only metres away from Medvedev but was tackled by security men and hauled out of the arena.
Medvedev became increasingly wound up by the crowd, with appeals to the umpire to control the “idiots”.
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His mood was not improved when he double-faulted to drop serve in the third game of the fourth set and, although he got back on terms immediately, Nadal took his seventh break point in the next game.
The victory comes as Ashleigh Barty made history by becoming the first player to win the Australian Open on home soil in 44 years.
The world number one defeated American Danielle Collins in the final, claiming the women’s singles titles. -Sky News
