Stan Wawrinka Beats Novak Djokovic For U.S. Open 2016 Title

Stan Wawrinka had played substantially more tennis at the U.S. Open than world No. 1 Novak Djokovic by the time he reached Sunday’s final, but that did not seem to slow the Swiss down one bit.

Stan Wawrinka Beats Novak Djokovic For U.S. Open 2016 Title

Wawrinka, The No. 3-seed from Switzerland, impressed in a great display of prowess and physical strength to upset Serbia’s Djokovic with his one-handed backhand in a 6-7(1), 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium in Flushing Meadows, New York.

The win marked Wawrinka’s third Grand Slam title in three major final appearances, adding to the trophies he won at the 2014 Australian Open and 2015 French Open, the latter in which he also defeated Djokovic in a four-set final.

“We know each other for many, many years,” Wawrinka, 31, said on court. “Because of you I am the player I am today.

“This is honestly amazing. I came here without expecting, without having the goal to win the match. I have played quite a bit of tennis these two weeks; I’m pretty empty. There was so much emotion. This is something that I never had before.”

Djokovic went on a strange trip to the final, finishing merely three out of six matches as one opponent gave him a walkover and two others retired. His total time on the court fell just under nine hours, half of the 17 hours and 50 minutes Wawrinka had played.

The Serb won the 2015 U.S. Open. The last player before him to fail to defend that title is Roger Federer, who won five straight from 2004 to 2008.

On Sunday, Djokovic raced to a 5-2 lead and won two set points on Wawrinka’s serve in the 32nd minute. However, Wawrinka saved both of those, held and then broke for 4-5 when Djokovic recorded his first double fault of the match.

They then fought to a tiebreak, where Djokovic gained a 2-0 lead when they battled for what was perhaps the point of the tournament: a lengthy exchange in which Djokovic chased down two believed Wawrinka winners, only for the Swiss to finish the point on a fantastic forehand volley. The stadium roared as Wawrinka threw his arms up, although that would be the only point he would take in the break.

Wawrinka wouldn’t fall in two sets, however, but rather climbed to a 4-1 lead in the second and then– after Djokovic knotted it at 4-1– held for 5-4 and broke the Serb again when he hit a forehand groundstroke too hard to lock him and his opponent in a dead heat at the one-hour, 45-minute mark.

In the third, Wawrinka would gain a break lead only to relent again, but kept it 5-5 and then broke in spectacular fashion from 30-love down.

Then, at the start of the fourth set, the crowd was shocked and quickly became hushed after Djokovic seemed to cramp, going down 3-0 and apparently struggling to move.

The Serb called for the trainer, complaining about a toe pain. Wawrinka argued that he could only call for medical treatment during a change over, but officials allowed the break, Djokovic having a  toe on his right foot taped in a six-minute delay.

At one point, Djokovic looked toward Wawrinka and simply said, “Stan, sorry man.”

Djokovic later stated in his post-match press conference that his toe nail was “off” and “bleeding,” adding that he was not cramping up in the fourth set.

“I don’t think it’s necessary for me to talk about that now,” he said. “He won the match. … I don’t want to talk about this and you guys think I’m finding excuses. It’s just not necessary.”

Wawrinka would serve out the match in the ninth game of the fourth set, first going down love-30 but then hitting a forehand winner down the line and drawing an error off of Djokovic before pummeling a backhand down the line to pull Djokovic off the court, tapping a short overhead for the winner.

He would not win the title on his first match point, but would do so on his second, when Djokovic sent a groundstroke long. The pair embraced at the net, and then Wawrinka climbed the stairs of the stadium to his player box, where he would hug his coach, Magnus Norman, and his team.

It was an 11th straight win in a championship match for Wawrinka, dating to 2014, when he started working with former world No. 2 Norman. He had been 4-9 in finals from 2005 to 2013. He was only 4-19 against Djokovic head-to-head in their careers coming in, dropping four out of five of their most recent matchups.

Wawrinka became the first player to come from match point down to win the U.S. Open since Djokovic himself did so in 2011, being two match points down to Federer in the semifinals. The win also makes him the oldest U.S. Open champ since Ken Rosewallin 1970, who was 35.

“He’s been able to be able to produce some amazing tennis in the finals,” Norman said earlier in the tournament. “He surprised me for sure the way that he handled himself in his first Grand Slam final in Melbourne. I know how emotional it can be and how nervous I was feeling.”

When asked why he hasn’t been more consistent on tour– having won just one Masters 1000 event and now three Grand Slams– Wawrinka gave a very simple answer:

“I don’t care. I’m happy,” the Swiss said, leading the crowd to burst into laughter.

NEW YORK, NY – SEPTEMBER 11: Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland reacts against Novak Djokovic of Serbia during their Men’s Singles Final Match on Day Fourteen of the 2016 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on September 11, 2016 in the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images for USTA)