Home > Tennis > Roger Federer dumped! It's Novak Djokovic v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Australian Open final

Roger Federer dumped! It's Novak Djokovic v Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the Australian Open final

A real stunner for tennis as Federer and Rafael Nadal meet their match in Melbourne - and the unlikely lads will battle it out for the title.

by Larry Kwirirayi on 25 January 2008

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Over and out: Federer feels the strain against Djokovic (gettyimages.com)

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Any betting man would have put his money, life and limb on a Rafael Nadal v Roger Federer final. After all, the two top players had pretty much had their way in the previous rounds and were coming up against players who - at least in the case of young Jo-Wilfried Tsonga - were seen by many analysts as punching above their weight.

Then, in two days of blistering tennis Down Under, the tables were turned on the sporting world. The unfashionable choices romped to victory, both in straight sets, and both convincingly. The gods had hit back. The wheel of fortune had spun twice to a fresh number, a number that restored belief in the game again.

Tennis needed that, given the bad publicity it has received in the past year, what with the drugs and match-fixing sagas.

'It gives us an open final where we have two exciting players who each have an equal chance of winning the championship'

The fact that we had two big results in two days - the Tsonga one had lit up our eyes and made us wipe away our cynicism, allowing us to believe once again like the food critic on Ratatouille - made it even more remarkable.

Young Novak Djokovic - Djokie to his friends - whose best performance before this year's final had been a fourth round from 2007, then gave us the result we had wet dreams about for years, the sporting purist's fantasy. Our eyes lit up as the Fed Express tried everything in the book and was on the receiving end of the frustrations that almost always come commensurate with his opposition when they are up against him.

In the end it was the fans who won, which at the end of it all - when push does come to shove, as seems to be the case of late - is all that matters. It gives us an open final where we have two exciting players who each have an equal chance of winning the championship.

Maybe we should pray to the gods more often. We might just have Anna Kournikova back on the court and winning at least one tournament.

If that fails, however, we might just be forced to call on a better version of the guy who approached the coach of Benin's national football to ask him to help throw a match - as if they needed to be bribed to lose a match. They seem to be capable of that feat on their own...

Tsonga or Djokovic - who's your pick to win the final? Post your comments below or write an article of your own for Sportingo.

Comments (14)

by james on January 25, 2008

I will go for Jo-Wilfried Tsonga ..he was the strongest player on tour

by nemanja on January 25, 2008

james, you're kidding right? Tsonga had performed brilliantly thus far and the way he trashed Nadal brought a smile to my face. But lets not kid our selves. He definitely has the potential to be one of the better players but there is no way that he's winning AO, not yet at least cause like I said he has the potential and I'm sure he'll get a few grand slams under his belt (unless this run was a fluke ;)) Besides being technically gifted, Novak is also mentally stroner. He's been in the finals before (only once though) but he knows what it's about. Now I'm not saying that Tsonga will drop and let this opprutunity slide but I highly doubt he'll prevail over Novak. Djokovic is just too much mentally strong, look at the match vs Federer (down 3-5 he wins 7-5 and not to mention the tiebreaker). So I see Djokovic winning this in 3 sets but 3 darn close ones.

by nemanja on January 25, 2008

nole hasn't dropped a set thus far not even to the greatest player ever in this sport and it's not like he has had bad opponents (Hewitt, Ferrer and Federer) so to do that you know he's the real deal. Nadal came into his semis match with absolutely no competition and therefore came unprepared. He cleary expected Tsonga to lay over but clearly that didn't happen. Don't expect the same with Novak

by monsieur on January 25, 2008

if tsonga plays the way he played against nadal, which was frightening, i would think djokovic would be overwhelmed. djokovic is simply an extremely consistent all round player. the way tsonga was able to attack anytime he chose against the best defensive player in the world. i would not see djokovic with a sniff if tsonga brings that game with him.

by canada on January 25, 2008

Monsieur, I know you may be French and would like Tsonga to win, but he doesn't have a chance. Nemanja is right, Djokovic owned hewitt, ferrer, and then number 1 seed federer. You are right tho, djokovic is consistent. But he played a far better game than tsonga who was up against a shaky number 2.

by Piloonchas on January 25, 2008

Nole all the way! Since the beginning of the tournament I believed he was going to be the champ. He's not a new face in the circuit. He reached last year's US open final and won two masters series. He is good at this surface and played amazing in that tournament in teams representing Serbia. Yesterday the best two players faced each other. The champion would came from that match. I know Rafa is n2, but he isn't much regular. He's terrific at clay and has good results at other surfaces, but Novak is more regular, and now he is getting used to the circuit. CONGRATULATIONS NOLE! next, nadal is gonna win rolanga, master federer wimbledon and nole the us open

by Dani on January 25, 2008

well, that about sums it up, no matter what happens next, he, nole, made a tennis world much more fun and interesting in every way. ask de niro : ))

by Dan on January 25, 2008

Anything can happen, but Tsonga's victory over Nadal is meaningless considering that Nadal had never before even SEEN the semifinal of a hardcourt slam. It doesn't compare in the least to Djokovic's ousting of the two-time defending champion.

by Redcard on January 25, 2008

I have never seen Federer make so many unforced errors before, in the past Federer has always played with consistency. If Tsonga plays like he played against Nadal then he will win it.

by Greg on January 26, 2008

Some folks here are underestimating Tsonga. He's mentally tough, and much improved since Wimbledon last year. Nadal played his usual excellent game but Tsonga completely outplayed him. I think Tsonga, like Nole, has an all court game but more shot-making variety. He might be the best natural athlete on the tour, and he's in excellent physical condition (finally). Nole does have more experience, but not that much more. And Tsonga proved his mental toughness - another facet of his game he's improved. And watch Nole's mental toughness fade when he's pressured. It doesn't take much. Even in his match with Federer when everything was going his way he grimaced and rolled his eyes after making (relatively few) errors. I think its going to be an excellent match, with Jo Wilfried the victor!

by Kumar on January 26, 2008

It is great to see new faces in the final of the AO. Tsonga was mind-blowing against Nadal, who didn't seem hampered at all, but he always is less aggressive on hardcourts, with all the spin. Tsonga thoroughly demolished him. Federer has definitely played better in the past, but Djokovic gave him no room to operate, and was taking his slice apart. If both bring their semis form into the final, it will be a blockbuster, but I expect Novak to walk away a worthy champion.

by t.ks on January 27, 2008

Every time Roger lost, all the journalists felt happy. It's mad to hear or know that. Just one major Roger failed, all you guys show your big ego for that. Roger never said he lost because of his illness though it's real. Please be fair to the one who most past tennis players always said 'I have never seen the players like Roger in the history'. Please BE FAIR!