Somewhere there’s a zoom call without a party inadvertently muted. Somewhere there is a cat video that goes unviewed. Somewhere there is a rabbi who enjoys a lobster boil. But we’re not there yet. And similarly elusive: a figure who can beat Novak Djokovic in the final of the Australian Open.
For the ninth time, Djokovic played in the final. For the ninth time he outlasted the opponent. Sunday it was Russia’s Daniil Medvedev—no slouch of a player—whom Djokovic dismantled with a seamless, almost flawless, victory inside Rod Laver Arena.
Here are three thoughts from Djokovic’s 7-5, 6-2, 6-2, takedown of Medvedev in the 2021 Australian Open men’s final.