Novak Djokovic and Aryna Sabalenka got the two singles titles at the 2023 Australian Open. In the Tennisnerd podcast we say, Congrats Novak and Aryna!

Congrats Novak and Aryna!

Djokovic winning his 10th Australian Open and 22nd Grand Slam was not a difficult prediction. We got it right in our Australian Open 2023 predictions, but we didn’t quite predict that Aryna Sabalenka would win her first Grand Slam down under. However, she has one of the biggest games on the WTA Tour, so it’s not entirely surprising.

It felt a bit too predictable when you look back on the first grand slam of the year, especially toward the second week. Novak was too good and it was difficult to see who would be able to challenge him in the form he displayed. In the end, no one could. Tsitsipas managed to get to two tie-break sets in the final but still lost in three sets. Djokovic is too dominant, especially at the Australian Open.

Does this mean that Novak will surpass Nadal in a number of Grand Slams? Yes, it looks incredibly likely at this point. Who will threaten him for the Wimbledon title? And he doesn’t look to be going away any time soon, as he has said in multiple interviews. Will he get to 25 grand slams? Yes, very possibly.

We did miss Alcaraz, though. The tournament lacked something.

Sabalenka on fire

Will Aryna Sabalenka’s first grand slam victory open the floodgates to more slams for her? Maybe. But in the podcast, we speculate that she is more like the Wawrinka of the WTA Tour – when she is on, she is ON. And she will likely string a couple of slams together over her career. More than three? Hard to say.

Swiatek is still the player to beat on the women’s tour, but Sabalenka is now back in the 2nd spot in the rankings.

Can she take the number one spot?