Australian Open: Novak's 3-peat

A disgruntled Murray looks at the trophy

It is clear that since 2011, Novak Djokovic has been the best tennis player in the world. He's claimed 5 out of 9 majors since the start of 2011, with his latest being the 2013 Australian Open over Andy Murray, 6-7 7-6 6-3 6-2. This is his 3rd straight Aussie Open, becoming the first man in the Open Era to snag 3 in a row. It took him 4 sets to down the Scot, who actually won the first set via tiebreak. But the extra day of rest and the very easy semifinal against Ferrer really helped Djokovic. Not to mention Andy ended up having to call the trainer in this match due to some pains.

Regardless, it was a very close contest in the first two sets, which went to tiebreaks. The reason for that was the impressive holding of serves. It wasn't until the 8th game of the 3rd set where someone drew blood. And that was Nole, who went up 5-3 with a break then served out to snag the set. The fourth set pretty much was all Djokovic, He got an early break of serve due to a Murray double fault (a rarity in this Open), and coasted to the finish line.

So now that the first major the year is in the books, what can we expect the rest of the year? Well, I don't see Andy or Roger winning the French; my 3 favorites for that are Novak (Obviously), Rafa (He's a beast on clay whether he's healthy or not), and Juan Martin Del Potro (Don't let his early exit fool you, he'll win a major soon enough and it could be this one). When it comes to Wimbledon, however, that's where I see Andy and Roger as the main favorites. I feel like they're games thrive the most on grass, so I wouldn't be surprised to see a rematch if the draw played out like that. And for the US Open, that's the major I see as the most wide open. There's been a different winner each year since 2008, so it will just come down to the draw and who's playing well in the 2nd week in my opinion.

This 2013 year for tennis is going to be an interesting one. It definitely seems like Murray and Djokovic are going to be the new Roger and Rafa, which can only mean great things. That means that Rafa and Roger are going to be even more hungry to show that they can win major titles and not be considered on the outside looking in. I also expect a few more players to break the top fours dominance, such as Jo-Wilfriend Tsonga (who played out of his mind but narrowly lost to Federer in the QFs) or Del Potro. All in all, this is going to be a year definitely worth watching.

Congrats, Novak!

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