Enjoy these exclusive pictures of Wawrinka‘s victory over an injured Nadal. Thanks a lot to Brian Peel!
Stanislas Wawrinka beat an injured Rafael Nadal to win his maiden Grand Slam title. Federer, Ferrer, Mauresmo… here are a few players’ reactions on Twitter:
But first Wawrinka’s coach, Magnus Norman:
Very proud of this team. Also great sportmanship from the Nadal camp. All good lads! #Stanimal pic.twitter.com/uCSZlXDFlg
— Magnus Norman (@normansweden) January 26, 2014
So deserving for Stan the man #nevergiveup #whatamatch #sohappy
— Roger Federer (@rogerfederer) January 21, 2014
Well done @stanwawrinka well deserved
— Tomáš Berdych (@tomasberdych) January 26, 2014
Amélie Mauresmo who knows a thing or two about players injured in a Grand Slam final:
Fantastique Stan Wawrinka !!!
C'est totalement mérité bravo Monsieur !
Et Rafa Nadal immense champion jusqu'au bout chapeau…
— AmelieMauresmo (@AmeMauresmo) January 26, 2014
It's always great to see dreams come true in sport.. Congratulations @stanwawrinka. What a way to break into the big league! Part of history
— Mahesh Bhupathi (@Maheshbhupathi) January 26, 2014
Come on Stan The Man#myhero#remember: pain is temporarily but victory is forever!!!
— Dominique Monami (@DominiqueMonami) January 26, 2014
Feliciano Lopez and David Ferrer congratulate Wawrinka and wish a good recovery to their pal Nadal:
Congrats to @stanwawrinka!! @AustralianOpen Champion. Y a @RafaelNadal por ser tan grande y no rendirse nunca!! #crack #numero1
— Feliciano López (@feliciano_lopez) January 26, 2014
Enhorabona a @stanwawrinka por su triunfo. Ánimo a @RafaelNadal y sobretodo que se recupere pronto!
— David Ferrer (@DavidFerrer87) January 26, 2014
Huge congrats to Stan for winning his first grand slam title!! Hope Rafa gets better soon! @stanwawrinka @RafaelNadal @AustralianOpen
— Sabine Lisicki (@sabinelisicki) January 26, 2014
and saving the best for last, Kim Clijsters, a few days ago:
Teaching my little man to be like Stan!!
:-))) pic.twitter.com/kMx4kSo2rc
— Kim Clijsters (@Clijsterskim) January 23, 2014
Li Na overcame a break down in the first set to defeat Dominika Cibulkova 7-6 6-0. It is the second Grand Slam title for the Chinese, who won the Roland Garros 2011 title, defeating Francesca Schiavone in the final.
Li Na’s funny speech:
Dominika Cibulkova was smiling despite the defeat, she can be proud of her performance during the tournament:
Rafael Nadal’s road to the final
| Round | Opponent | Score |
| R1 | Bernard Tomic | 6-4 ret. |
| R2 | Thanasi Kokkinakis | 6-2 6-4 6-2 |
| R3 | Gael Monfils | 6-1 6-2 6-3 |
| R4 | Kei Nishikori | 7-6 7-5 7-6 |
| QF | Grigor Dimitrov | 3-6 7-6 7-6 6-2 |
| SF | Roger Federer | 7-6 6-3 6-3 |
Stanislas Wawrinka’s road to the final
| Round | Opponent | Score |
| R1 | Andrey Golubev | 6-4 4-1 ret. |
| R2 | Alejandro Falla | 6-3 6-3 6-7 6-4 |
| R3 | Vasek Pospisil | WO |
| R4 | Tommy Roberdo | 6-3 7-6 7-6 |
| QF | Novak Djokovic | 2-6 6-4 6-2 3-6 9-7 |
| SF | Tomas Berdych | 6-3 6-7 7-6 7-6 |
Nadal – Wawrinka head to head
| Year | Tournament | Surface | Winner | Score |
| 2007 | Australian Open | Hard | Nadal | 6-2 6-2 6-2 |
| 2007 | Stuttgart | Clay | Nadal | 6-4 7-5 |
| 2007 | Paris Bercy | Hard | Nadal | 6-4 6-3 |
| 2009 | Miami | Hard | Nadal | 7-6(2) 7-6(4) |
| 2010 | Rome | Clay | Nadal | 6-4 6-1 |
| 2010 | Toronto | Hard | Nadal | 7-6(12) 6-3 |
| 2010 | Shanghai | Hard | Nadal | 6-4 6-4 |
| 2012 | Monte Carlo | Clay | Nadal | 7-5 6-4 |
| 2013 | Madrid | Clay | Nadal | 6-2 6-4 |
| 2013 | Roland Garros | Clay | Nadal | 6-2 6-3 6-1 |
| 2013 | Shanghai | Hard | Nadal | 7-6(10) 6-1 |
| 2013 | London Masters | Hard | Nadal | 7-6(5) 7-6(6) |
While Stanislas Wawrinka will play in his first Grand Slam final, with a win on Sunday, Rafael Nadal could equal Sampras’s 14 Grand Slam titles.
The Spaniard could also become the first player in the Open era (and the third overall after Aussie legends Rod Laver and Roy Emerson) to win each Grand Slam title at least twice.
Both players enter the final with great momentum. After struggling to overcome Kei Nishikori in the fourth round and Grigor Dimitrov in the quarter-finals, Nadal beat arch rival Roger Federer in great fashion on Friday. Wawrinka beat three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic in the quarter-finals and will give it all to take the trophy home, but the stats speak clearly against Wawrinka:
– Nadal leads their head to head 12-0.
– Wawrinka is the seventh different opponent Nadal will face in a Grand Slam final. Only Federer (Wimbledon 2006 and 2007) and Djokovic (Wimbledon and US Open 2011, Australian Open 2012) beat him in the final.
– the last first time Grand Slam finalist to have won the title is Juan Martin Del Potro at the 2009 US Open. Both Tomas Berdych (Wimbledon 2010) and David Ferrer (Roland Garros 2014) failed to win a set in their final. Their opponent: Rafael Nadal.
Pete Sampras will present the trophy to the winner on Sunday, 20 years after the first of his two Australian victories (1994, 1997). Who do you think will win?
Who will be the 2014 Australian Open champion?
- Rafael Nadal (33%, 92 Votes)
- Novak Djokovic (28%, 80 Votes)
- Roger Federer (27%, 76 Votes)
- Juan Martin Del Potro (4%, 11 Votes)
- Andy Murray (4%, 10 Votes)
- Stanislas Wawrinka (2%, 5 Votes)
- Tomas Berdych (1%, 3 Votes)
- Other (1%, 3 Votes)
- Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (1%, 2 Votes)
- Richard Gasquet (0%, 1 Votes)
- David Ferrer (0%, 0 Votes)
Total Voters: 283
Loading ...Photo credit: Tennis Australia
Dominika Cibulkova’s road to the final
| Round | Opponent | Score |
| R1 | Francesca Schiavone | 6-3 6-4 |
| R2 | Stefanie Voegele | 6-0 6-1 |
| R3 | Carla Suarez Navarro | 6-1 6-0 |
| R4 | Maria Sharapova | 3-6 6-4 6-1 |
| QF | Simona Halep | 6-3 6-0 |
| SF | Agnieszka Radwanska | 6-1 6-2 |
If 2011 French Open champion and 2-time Australian Open finalist Li Na was one of the favorite for the title, the presence of the diminutive Cibulkova in final was all but expected.
Ranked 24, her best result at a Grand Slam so far had been a semi-final at Roland Garros in 2009.
Cibulkova has won all but one of her matches in straight sets, including three in one hour or less. She is looking to become the first player outside the top 10 since Serena Williams seven years ago to win in Melbourne Park.
Li Na’s road to the final
| Round | Opponent | Score |
| R1 | Ana Konjuh | 6-2 6-0 |
| R2 | Belinda Bencic | 6-0 7-6 |
| R3 | Lucie Safarova | 1-6 7-6 6-3 |
| R4 | Elena Makarova | 6-2 6-0 |
| QF | Flavia Pennetta | 6-2 6-2 |
| SF | Eugenie Bouchard | 6-2 6-4 |
Li Na has reached the Australian Open final for the third time in four years: she lost to Kim Clijsters in 2011, a few months before capturing her maiden Grand Slam title at Roland Garros; and she was defeated by Victoria Azarenka in another thrilling match last year.
Li Na was pushed to the brink in the third round by Lucie Safarova, who had a match point to win in straight sets. An unforced error by Safarova allowed the world number four, back into the match and the tournament.
Li Na – Dominika Cibulkova head to head
| Year | Tournament | Surface | Winner | Score |
| 2008 | Antwerp | Carpet | Li Na | 6-4 6-3 |
| 2010 | Madrid | Clay | Li Na | 6-2 3-6 7-5 |
| 2012 | Rome | Clay | Li Na | 6-1 7-6(4) |
| 2013 | Toronto | Hard | Li Na | 7-6(1) 6-2 |
Li Na appears as the huge favorite of this final: she’ll play her fourth major final overall and Cibulkova only managed to win a set in their four previous meetings.
Who will win between Li Na and Dominika Cibulkova? Please share your thoughts.
Photo credit: Ben Solomon/Tennis Australia
