Dominic Thiem (5) v. Novak Djokovic (2)
The 2020 Australian Open Men's Final.
I rolled into the Men's Final like it was old hat, like I belonged on the grounds. It felt right to be there. I could see myself living in Melbourne and working for the tournament or going back as a fan. I truly hope that this wasn't my one shot to be there. Out of all of my worldwide travel, Melbourne and the AO are one of the very few places I'd like to go back without reservation. I usually like to go somewhere, experience it, cherish my memories, and then try somewhere new, but I don't want Melbourne to be only in my memory. It's a place and experience that I don't think would be tarnished if I revisited it. It's not something I want to preserve as it was, but I want to live the tournament again and feel its evolution over time. It was really cool speaking with people throughout the two weeks who had been coming for 10 or 20 years and hearing about all of the changes they've witnessed. I can't help but wonder how my views on the tournament would change if I had been able to go to Rolland Garos, Wimbledon, or the US Open. Would it be as special to me or would another one be even better? It would be so much more convenient if the US Open was my favorite. LOL This wasn't my year to get a Calendar Slam, but hopefully those tournaments are still on my horizon.
I had so much fun at the Men's Final! It was a real party. I sat next to an Irish couple who lived in Melbourne for many years. They were a blast to chat and cheer with while we watched the match. We had great seats - the first row in the uppers. There's no bad view in Rod Laver, but ours provided us with a good perspective and we were high enough to be able to chat quietly here and there without being disruptive.
We were also sitting around a mass of Djokovic fans, which suited me just fine. Or at least it did until they became pretty obnoxious. I loved the energy they brought, but some drank a lot and then wanted to always get the last cheer in before the next point started. It frequently delayed the next point and was pretty rude to the Thiem. I didn't like that at all. I wasn't able to capture a video of when they were being pretty obnoxious because I was more interested in the play about to start, but here's a video of some of the fans around us.
I was gifted the experience of watching my favorite men's player win after a 4-hour battle. As I mentioned in my post about the semifinals, I was nervous about Thiem's ability to bring it for the final. It didn't take long to realize that he was there to win, not to be satisfied with making it to the finals, and was going to make Djokovic work. Never in the match did I feel like Djokovic was taking a commanding lead or like the title was in the bag. I had a weird faith that he was going to win, but I also knew that assurance came from trying to will it to happen.
The match was the exact culmination of my entire trip to Australia that I dreamed of. From the moment I bought my tickets to the moment Djokovic held his championship trophy, I 100% took for granted that he'd win. I assumed from the start that he'd be in that position. There was one match where a little doubt creeped in, but I really never believed that he would lose. It felt fated. As I look back now and I think about how many players were in that tournament, I'm a little shocked that it came together like that for me. It's an incredibly egotistical perspective to take. Nothing in the tournament was done for me as an individual. The way this came together felt like it though. Knowing that this might have been my only shot at seeing these iconic players in person, I wanted so bad to see the tournament I imagined, the one I built up in my head. It didn't work out that way for me on the women's side. I didn't see most of my favorite female players play before they were eliminated, but the magic came together on the men's side. It was better than I ever could have imagined. You can hear my excitement after match point was played in the video below.
With the conclusion of the tournament, my time in Australia came to an end. The next morning I boarded a plane for Malaysia. I was excited about what was to come, but really didn't want to leave Australia yet.
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