As the match wore on, Wawrinka proved stronger and appeared to have Djokovic on the ropes early in the fourth set, the Serbian breathing heavily after some rallies and clutching at his leg in discomfort after being broken to trail 0-2.
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“He loves to play in the big matches”.
The 31-year-old’s success draws him level with Andy Murray on three grand slam victories but both remain far behind Djokovic’s 12, Rafael Nadal’s 14 and Roger Federer’s all-time best 17. If you look, yes, I have three Grand Slam titles.
“They have not only been winning but been in semi-finals or the final every time”.
I dont want to keep talking about being part of them or close (to) them, because I think the Big 4 has to stay the Big 4, Wawrinka said, his shiny silver trophy on the table in front of him.
Djokovic, meanwhile, fell to 2-5 in U.S. Open finals and remained at 12 Grand Slam titles for his career.
Wawrinka, who won his first major at the 2014 Australian Open, may be the ultimate big-game player in men’s tennis. The Serb advanced to the second round with a walkover and won both his third round and the quarterfinal when his opponents were forced to retire with injuries.
“He likes to occasionally whack the ball quite hard, and I don’t think that Novak likes that”, said Wawrinka’s coach, Magnus Norman.
“This is unbelievable. I came here without expecting”. He entered Sunday having spent nearly exactly twice as much time on court during the tournament – about 18 hours vs. about 9 hours – as Djokovic, who benefited from injuries to three opponents that withdrew before or during matches.
Not bad for a guy who said his goal when he started out was to “maybe one day play a French Open”. Ultimately however, the Serb was able to win the last five points of the deciding phase to take the set. Wawrinka went up 4-1 in the second before Djokovic took the next three.
Wawrinka won the third set 7-5, after trading breaks with his rival. The play went for about 4hrs. I haven’t had one.
In the fourth set, Djokovic began to experience cramps and was having trouble moving on the court.
Sunday he went to a place he had not been prior in NY, champion at the Open in an unlikely finish, winning in four bruising sets over Djokovic, who has dominated the men’s tennisphere over the last two years.
“Winning four Grand Slams in a row for me was an incredible achievement. I mean, he definitely deserves to be mentioned in the mix of top players”. He had kept his cool and powered through with incredible mental stamina. I was completely shaking. I am very proud of it, so this loss today can not overshadow the great moments I have had in Australia and especially in Paris.
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“Stan, sorry! I can’t stand”, Djokovic shouted across to him during the break.
