Rafael Nadal has taken all-time ownership of the record for men’s Grand Slam singles titles, the Spaniard earning his record 21st major crown with an extraordinary 2-6 6-7(5) 6-4 6-4 7-5 come-from-behind victory over Daniil Medvedev at Rod Laver Arena on Sunday night.

Nadal looked down and out after dropping the opening two sets, but steeled himself to snap a three-way tie with Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer on 20 major singles titles, winning the match in five hours and 24 minutes.

Out and out champion: Nadal is now a 21-time Slam winner
Nadal’s second Australian Open title comes 13 years after his first in 2009, and broke a run of four straight losses in the 2012, 2014, 2017 and 2019 Melbourne Park finals. The Spaniard now has a 21-8 record in major finals, and Sunday’s win was his fourth in succession in major deciders since he lost the 2019 Melbourne final to Djokovic.

Medvedev was aiming to become the first man in the Open Era to win his second major at the next Grand Slam following his first, which came at last year’s US Open when he denied Djokovic in the final. It’s the second straight final loss for the Russian in Australia, denied in the decider by Djokovic last February, and he falls to 1-3 in Grand Slam finals.

Info: https://ausopen.com/