Swiss tennis player Stan Wawrinka has won the French Open in a four-set victory over top-ranked Novak Djokovic of Serbia.
Wawrinka, 30, is currently ranked No. 8 in the world. Roland Garros marks his second Grand Slam title, after winning the Australian Open in 2014.
Stan Wawrinka defied the odds to win his first French Open title after the Swiss recorded a famous 4-6 6-4 6-3 6-4 victory over world No 1 Novak Djokovic in the final in Paris.
Djokovic was the overwhelming favourite to record his 29th consecutive win and complete a career Grand Slam at Roland Garros, but Wawrinka produced a scintillating display to defeat the Serb in four gruelling sets.
The victory is only Wawrinka’s second in 18 meetings against Djokovic and means the world No 9 now has a second grand slam title to add to his success at the Australian Open in 2014.
Djokovic had beaten nine-time champion Rafael Nadal and Britain’s Andy Murray en route to the final, but Wawrinka, who won the boys’ singles title at Roland Garros in 2003, cemented his place among the elite with an outstanding performance.
“It’s really hard to believe but it has finally happened,” said Wawrinka, who fired 60 winners past the Serb.
“It was the match of my life. But bravo to Novak, it’s a great challenge, the biggest one to play him.”
“It’s a special moment for me.”
Enthralling opening
The tone was set in the opening game as Djokovic earned a break point but Wawrinka edged an enthralling 39-shot rally, the longest of the tournament so far, to survive and hold.
Wawrinka was eager to dictate the points, stepping through the baseline and unleashing his heavy groundstrokes but they resulted in errors as well as winners and Djokovic’s defence was often up to the task.
Another break point came and went for the world No 1 in the fifth game but at 3-3, he finally made one count as a backhand wide from Wawrinka conceded 40-0, before a double fault allowed Djokovic to convert.
Serving for the set at 5-4, Djokovic was fortunate to hear Wawrinka’s forehand winner called out, particularly as hawk-eye would have judged it in, which opened up two set points.
Wawrinka saved both with two thundering passing shots before earning one chance to break, but Djokovic held his nerve to serve out the first set.
The Swiss was not deterred as his hitting became more persistent and more precise in the second, but five break points came and went – the fifth prompting an angry lashing on the net – before he finally took his chance.
It came at the perfect time too as Djokovic, serving to stay in the set, hit an uncharacteristic forehand long as Wawrinka deservedly drew level.
Djokovic mangled his racket, which almost bounced into a ball-boy, and the Serb’s troubles were far from over as Wawrinka’s dominance continued with two stupendous winners in the sixth game to break and lead 4-2.
Djokovic was rattled and Wawrinka compounded his opponent’s misery with another thundering backhand before serving out to put his opponent behind in sets for the first time in the tournament.
