On Sunday, January 28, Roger Federer defeated Marin Cilic to win his 6th Australian Open. This also brought about his 20th Grand Slam title, making him the first male to reach this number of wins in the Australian Open, Roland Garros, Wimbledon, and the US Open.
While Caroline Wozniacki and Simona Halep played before Federer and Cilic, the heat was excruciating. They then closed the roof at Rod Laver Arena and turned on the air conditioning for the men’s championship. At the start of the match it seemed Federer would become victorious without much of a threat, until Cilic stepped up to win five games in a row, causing Federer to cling to his serve in the following game.
Although throughout the duration of the match, lasting three hours and three minutes — Federer outscored Cilic by just 24 points, it was evident that Federer was not willing to fall to him. He had a thirst to break the barrier of 20 Grand Slam titles, and nothing was going to stop him from achieving this feat.
In a quote from Federer after the win he exclaimed, “It’s a dream come true and the fairytale continues,” ensuring fans that they had not seen the end of his marvelous career on the tennis court.
This win helped him to tie the record for men’s Australian Open wins at six and spread the gap between himself and Rafael Nadal for the most Grand Slam titles by a male. “I’m so happy, it’s unbelievable,” Federer says. “After the year I had last year, it’s unbelievable.
Many thought Federer was past his prime, but the 36-year-old’s win over 29-year-old Cilic only proves their theory to be incorrect. Some are even referring to this as Federer’s “second golden age”. “Federer has previously won 19 of these, but he has a look of a man who’s never done it before,” BBC tennis correspondent, Russell Fuller commented. “He may be 36, but he shows no sign of aging. He’s proved yet again he’s too good for the rest of the world.”
