Australian Open 2011: Ranking the Last 15 Men's Finals
Since 1996, the Australian Open men's final has only gone five sets one time, so picking the best match over the past 15 years wasn't difficult; ranking the other 14 was a little more challenging.
Seven matches have gone four sets, while another seven have lasted just three.
Ten different men have won the title Down Under in the past decade-and-a-half. Multiple winners include only Andre Agassi (3) and Roger Federer (4), who have won just one less trophy than the other eight men combined.
15. Petr Korda Def. Marcelo Rios in 1998
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Sixth-seeded Korda dropped only six games en route to a 6-2, 6-2, 6-2 win over ninth-seeded Rios.
It was the Czech's only singles Grand Slam title and it came with a bit of an asterisk as he was suspended just a few months later for using a banned substance, marking the end of his career.
14. Andre Agassi Def. Rainer Schuttler in 2003
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Agassi's 6-2, 6-2, 6-1 blasting of Schuttler was the shortest men's final in terms of games played in the history of the Australian Open. Pat O'Hara Wood also dropped only five games on his way to beating Bert St. John for the 1923 title, but that was back when the tournament was called the Australasian Championships.
Despite the brevity of the match, Agassi's triumph gets a little bump on this list because it was the last of his eight major titles.
The American dropped only one set during the entire fortnight—to Nicolas Escude in the third round.
13. Pete Sampras Def. Carlos Moya in 1997
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Aside from Moya's hat, this match held very little intrigue as Sampras won 6-2, 6-3, 6-3.
Moya was unseeded, but somehow matriculated his way to the final, where the American took him out for his second and final Aussie Open title and his ninth of 14 Grand Slam championships.
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12. Andre Agassi Def. Arnaud Clement in 2001
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Agassi's five-set win over Patrick Rafter in the semifinals was a lot more dramatic than the American's 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 victory over 15th-seeded Clement in the championship.
It was Agassi's second straight Australian Open title.
11. Boris Becker Def. Michael Chang in 1996
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Remember when American tennis was good?
Three men from the United States made the quarterfinals at the '96 Australian Open and fifth-seeded Michael Chang advanced to his first of two Grand Slam finals that year, but was ousted, 6-2, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2 by German Boris Becker.
It was his sixth and final major title, and his first in five years.
10. Andre Agassi Def. Yevgeny Kafelnikov in 2000
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The top two seeds advanced to the final of the 2000 Australian Open, with No. 1 Agassi defeating No. 2 Kafelnikov, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4, for the crown.
9. Yevgeny Kafelnikov Def. Thomas Enqvist in 1999
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This was one of the wackiest Australian Opens in history. Top-seeded Marcelo Rios withdrew before the tournament began and three unseeded men—Tommy Haas, Thomas Enqvist and Nicolas Lapentti—reached the semis.
The only seed to make the final four was No. 10 Kafelnikov, who defeated Enqvist, 4-6, 6-0, 6-3, 7-6 (7-1), in the championship to capture his only Aussie Open title. It was also the only time Enqvist advanced past the quarters at a Grand Slam.
8. Marat Safin Def. Lleyton Hewitt in 2005
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Safin needed a fourth-set tiebreaker and a 9-7 win in the fifth to bounce top seed and defending champion Roger Federer in the semifinals before he could beat Hewitt, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, to capture his only Australian Open title.
It was a disappointing result for the hometown crowd, which was pulling for an Australian to win the event for the first time since Mark Edmondson in 1976. Hewitt was the first Aussie to make the final in 17 years and he has yet to return.
7. Roger Federer Def. Marat Safin in 2004
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An unseeded Safin took out top-seeded Andy Roddick in the quarters and defending champion Andre Agassi in the semis—each in five sets—but didn't have much left for the finals, where Federer captured his first Australian Open title in a 7-6 (7-3), 6-4, 6-2 decision.
6. Roger Federer Def. Fernando Gonzalez in 2007
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Federer's third Australian Open title—and second in a row—was a breeze as he didn't drop a set in seven matches.
He beat 10th-seeded Gonzalez, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4, 6-4, in the championship for his 10th Grand Slam win.
5. Roger Federer Def. Andy Murray in 2010
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Heading into the '10 Australian Open, critics were once again questioning whether this was the end of the line for Federer because he had just lost to Juan Martin del Potro in the finals of the U.S. Open.
But after del Potro lost in the fourth round and defending champion Rafael Nadal retired due to a right knee injury in the quarters, Federer advanced to his eighth consecutive Grand Slam final.
Murray led 6-4 in head-to-head meetings with Federer entering the showdown, but the Fed Express took home his 16th Grand Slam title with a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (13-11) win.
4. Roger Federer Def. Marcos Baghdatis in 2006
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Baghdatis was unseeded, but came away with his best result at a major when he advanced to the '06 finals.
He continued to stun the tennis world by taking the first set from Federer, but eventually relented as the top seed won, 5-7, 7-5, 6-0, 6-2, to capture his second Australian Open title.
3. Novak Djokovic Def. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in 2008
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Djokovic defeated unseeded Tsonga, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), to capture his first Grand Slam title, but what the Serb did in the semis was even more impressive.
Djokovic ousted top-seeded Roger Federer in straight sets to snap the defending champion's incredible streak of 10 straight major finals.
2. Thomas Johansson Def. Marat Safin in 2002
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The '02 final did not feature a very sexy matchup, but it turned into one of the most competitive finals of the past 15 years.
With the top five seeds all gone before the third round, the path was wide open for No. 9 Safin and No. 16 Johansson.
In the only Grand Slam final of his career, the Swede took down Safin, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (7-4).
1. Rafael Nadal Def. Roger Federer in 2009
15 of 15The previous 14 finals don't even come close to this one.
The '09 tournament as a whole is referred to as one of the best in tennis history. First, defending champion Novak Djokovic retired in the fourth set of his quarterfinal match against Andy Roddick because of the heat.
Then, top-seeded Nadal played three tiebreakers and five sets with Fernando Verdasco in order to advance to his first hard-court Grand Slam final, where he met up with Federer, who was looking for his record-tying 14th major title.
Nadal won the first set, 7-5, before Federer answered back with a 6-3 victory in the second. The Spaniard won the third, 7-3 in a tiebreaker, but the Fed Express responded once again by taking the fourth, 6-3. The final set was not as close as Nadal won it, 6-2.
It was Federer's third consecutive loss to Nadal in a major final and he was so frustrated that he broke down and cried after the match as the adoring crowd cheered him on.
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