Sinner & Sabalenka WIN Australian Open titles

MELBOURNE, Australia (ESPN) -- Jannik Sinner pulled off a remarkable comeback from two sets down to defeat Daniil Medvedev 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 in the Australian Open final Sunday.

The fourth-seeded Sinner, who had only lost one set coming into the deciding match, looked destined to lose in straight sets as the third-seeded Medvedev blasted his way to a rapid two-set advantage. But the Italian found his feet midway through the final and prevailed in a battle of will and endurance over three hours, 44 minutes.

It marks the first career major title for Sinner and an unwanted record for Medvedev, who became the first person in Grand Slam history to lose multiple finals after winning the first two sets. Medvedev also squandered a two-set advantage to Rafael Nadal in Melbourne in 2022.

"I was in a little bit of trouble today at two sets to one down in a little over an hour," Sinner said. "So I just tried to stay positive, trying to stick to the game plan which I had to adjust a little bit. Daniil is an incredible player, and showed also again he is an incredible fighter."

Featuring in his first Slam final, the 22-year-old Sinner started nervously. Medvedev broke in the third game of the match, no mean feat given Sinner had held serve for 86 of 88 service games coming into the match.

The Russian played with pace and aggression early -- dictating terms to Sinner, hitting 14 winners to the Italian's five in an opening set that flew by in just 36 minutes.

The nerves didn't seem to dissipate for Sinner, who struggled to hold his opening service game of the second set, saving four break point chances to level at 1-1. Medvedev then held to love, and Sinner was again on the back foot, and Medvedev broke for 3-1 on the way to taking the second after the pair exchanged a break each later in the stanza.

Sinner was wayward, sending balls long or missing wide, which was in total contrast to the six matches prior to the final in which he gave up just the one set -- in the semifinal to Novak Djokovic.

But all Sinner had to do was extend the match. Coming into the final, Medvedev had spent 20 hours and 33 minutes on court, the second most of any man to make a major decider -- and it started to show.

After leaping out of the blocks -- serving well and attacking with intent -- Medvedev slowed midway through the third set. His first serve percentage had dipped from 86% in the first set to 50% by the third, and he netted 15 unforced errors as Sinner eventually broke in the 10th game of the set, winning it 6-4.

The fourth was a similar story, as Sinner's level rose while Medvedev's wavered. Extended rallies were a friend for Medvedev throughout this tournament, but they were beginning to work against him as fatigue continued to eat away at his game. And Sinner continued to eat away at Medvedev's lead, again breaking in the 10th game to force a deciding set to rapturous applause in Rod Laver Arena.

Medvedev wasn't without a golden opportunity in the fourth, but he squandered his break point look in the seventh game. He wouldn't get another sniff on Sinner's serve, as the Italian took control in the fourth and early in the fifth, setting himself up to clinch the decider 6-3 and secure his first Grand Slam title.

Sinner is just the second Italian man to win a Grand Slam after Adriano Panatta won the French Open back in 1976. Francesca Schiavone and Flavia Pennetta are Italy's other Grand Slam champions, having won the women's 2010 French Open and 2015 US Open respectively.

Sinner said feeling pressure in the moments he was down two sets was a challenge, and that he was "extremely happy" with how he handled adversity on the big stage.

"He played really, really well for the first two sets or 2½ sets. I tried just to play even level, trying to take a couple of chances in the third set, which I've done," he said. "When you win one very important game, the match can change occasionally, and that was the case today.

"I just tried to stay as long in the court as possible, knowing that he has spent so many hours on the court. The more the match goes on, maybe physically I'm a little bit better today, because he played so many hours. I think that today that was the key."

The Australian Open remains a bittersweet tournament for Medvedev, who has made three finals in Melbourne -- his most of any Slam -- but has fallen all three times, twice after leading by two sets.

But he said fatigue had taken its toll after a marathon tournament in which he played 31 sets, the most of any player at a major, and described this year's Australian Open as "by far" the most taxing tournament he's ever played.

"I got a little tired physically, but [in] every other match before, my opponents didn't manage to take advantage of it," he said. "During the match, every time it was the same story, after two sets, my energy level dropped, was dropping because I didn't have a perfect sleep, I was playing long before.

"So let's call it my fault because I needed to win easier matches, but sometimes it's tough."

History was up against Medvedev, given no man has ever won their quarterfinal, semifinal, and final of a major all in five sets.

With the final going the distance, it sets a record for the most five-set matches played at an Australian Open, and ties the record for most ever in a major with the 1983 US Open.

Following his breakthrough major win, Sinner will retain his world No. 4 ranking, while Medvedev will hold the No. 3 slot, with a gap opening between the current top four and fifth-ranked Andrey Rublev.

MELBOURNE, Australia (ESPN) -- The first serve Zheng Qinwen sent to Aryna Sabalenka in Saturday's Australian Open women's final was slapped back over the net with so much venom that it almost passed the world No. 12 before she was able to jam her racket down on it.

It was that familiar sign of immediate intent from Sabalenka, something that had held her in great stead this fortnight at Melbourne Park. It also left little doubt in anyone's mind as to which player would be dictating terms in this match.

For 75 minutes, Sabalenka bullied her counterpart from China, smashing her way to Australian Open glory for the second time in as many years. Her 6-3, 6-2 triumph over Zheng capped one of the most dominant runs to a Slam title in tennis history, with Sabalenka a perfect 14-for-14 in sets, dropping just 31 games en route to the title.

abalenka, 25, never allowed first-time major finalist Zheng a moment to relax. The world No. 2 feasted on her serve, that same serve that had proved Zheng's greatest asset in her journey to the final. If Sabalenka didn't strike a near-unreturnable ball, it was only a matter of seconds before she was in control of the point and had her opponent scrambling behind the baseline.

Zheng, 21, had no answers for the onslaught. Instead, the barrage from the other side of the court appeared to drain her confidence. She double faulted six times, three in her first service game of the second set to hand another immediate break to Sabalenka.

When it was Sabalenka's turn to serve, the final only appeared more one-sided. She won 84% of the points in which she landed her first serve and, aside from her opening service game, didn't give up a single break point opportunity until the final game, when those pesky championship point nerves kicked in once again.

"I'm speechless right now," Sabalenka said after securing the match at the fourth time of asking. "I don't know how to describe my emotions. I'm super, super happy and proud of everything I was able to achieve. I just have to keep fighting for my dream and believe my father is watching me and very proud of me."

From the moment Sabalenka began her Australian Open title defense, there had been an impending sense of inevitability that she was once again destined to be the last woman standing at Melbourne Park.

While it's not uncommon for one of the world's top players to dominate their first-round opponent at a Slam, Sabalenka's 53-minute 6-0, 6-1 demolition of German qualifier Ella Seidel felt like a statement performance. In no way was she suffering the effects of an Australian Open hangover, rather she was picking up right where she left off 12 months ago.

The trend of blink-and-you'll-miss-it matches continued through to the semifinals. Sabalenka never conceded more than three games in any set as she breezed into the last four. And while American fourth-seed Coco Gauff tested her in the semifinals, she rose to the challenge in such a way that left just about every tennis pundit convinced she would repeat her 2023 triumph two days later.

There weren't many of those pressure moments in Saturday's final, but that speaks to how Sabalenka was able to put the result beyond doubt before the sun had begun setting over Rod Laver Arena.

The scariest part for Sabalenka's rivals might well be that she is still very much an unfinished project. Few, if any, can match her sheer power and aggression, but knowing how to control it and ensure it's being used to her advantage, rather than to her detriment, is something she's only beginning to learn. Her understanding of when to attack and when to play a more conservative brand of tennis, in a way that doesn't detract from her obvious strengths, was on display in Saturday's final.

In the first set, Sabalenka quickly fell into a 0-40 hole after she had broken for an early 2-0 lead. But there were no signs of panic or concern. No sign of trying to force something that wasn't there. Instead, she calmly served her way out of trouble, reeling off five consecutive points to avoid the break.

"I think Sabalenka is one of the most tough opponents I have faced," Zheng said after the match. "She's a really aggressive player. She takes away the rhythm compared to other players.

"It is so important to hold your own service game [against Sabalenka], because she had a really good serve. But I couldn't do that."

It's taken time for Sabalenka to learn she doesn't always have to take unnecessary risks by attempting to paint the lines with every groundstroke. She'll now, at times, opt for the more calculated approach, forcing her opponents into mistakes -- and it's proving even more successful.

Most would agree her run to the title this fortnight has been even more impressive than how she achieved the feat 12 months ago, yet in this campaign she struck exactly half the amount of winners as she did in 2023. Instead, the damage was being done by forcing her opponents into mistakes. It was no different in the final with Zheng committing 32 forced errors across the two sets, almost one in every three points.

There's no denying Sabalenka has been the most consistent player on the women's tour since her breakthrough at Wimbledon in 2021. Since then, no player has won more matches than her on the Slam stage. She has made the final four in seven of the last nine majors, played in three finals and now won two of them.

Iga Swiatek will continue to carry the world No. 1 tag, but Sabalenka has closed the gap considerably over the past 15 months. And with the trajectory she appears to be on, it seems only a matter of time before she usurps her.

"It's been on my mind that I didn't want to be that player who wins [a Grand Slam] and then disappeared," Sabalenka said after the final. "I just wanted to show that I'm able to be consistently there and I'm able to win another one.

"Now, having two Grand Slam titles, it's definitely given me more confidence and believe in myself. I'm where I'm meant to be, so that's really important."