After Australian Open heroics, more glory beckons for Nadal and Barty

THE first Grand Slam of the 2022 tennis season - the Australian Open - will be remembered by the sport's historians as one that began with controversy surrounding the tournament's unvaccinated defending champion, and ended with the most improbable of victories by an indefatigable player who's already a legend in his own right.

It was truly a fortnight of tennis of the highest quality, from the opening round all the way to the grand final.

We saw the emergence of more young talents, the presence of tour veterans who proved they are not ready to call it a day just yet, and countless nail-biting finishes as the athletes fought for every last point.

In the end, only 2 players from the starting field of 256 could be crowned the singles champions, and this year those honours went to Spain's Rafael Nadal and Australia's very own Ashleigh Barty.

The Miracle in Melbourne

Try as you might, there are probably not enough superlatives in the dictionary that one can use to describe Nadal's achievements over those 2 magical weeks Down Under.

Barely 5 months ago, the 35-year-old Spaniard had posted a photo of himself on social media standing with the aid of crutches.

That persistent foot injury meant a premature end to his 2021 season, and it was a big question mark if he would even make it on the plane to Australia in search of a men's record-breaking 21st Grand Slam.

But arrive Nadal did, and he vanquished 7 opponents in impressive fashion. And, in a marathon final, he outlasted Russia's world No 2 Daniil Medvedev in a bruising 5-set contest that lasted well over 5 hours.

Nadal recovered after losing the first 2 sets to beat the Russian in what was one of the most incredible and unforgettable matches in the modern era.

That triumph put him one Major clear of both Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, and no matter what else Nadal goes on to achieve at the tail end of his remarkable career, he has already cemented his status as one of the greatest players ever to wield a tennis racket.

Next up for the man nicknamed "El Matador" is his favourite Grand Slam on his favourite surface, the French Open on the red clay courts of Paris. That's where Nadal has won 13 of his 21 Grand Slams, and assuming he can stay injury-free until the tournament begins in May, he will likely extend that number to 22.

Barty's party

Talk about dominance on the court. There was never really any serious doubt that Ashleigh Barty - the world's top-ranked female player - was going to win her third Grand Slam title, even though she carried the weight of an entire nation on her shoulders to become the first Australian champion in Melbourne in 44 long years.

It was more the way she managed that feat that will send shivers down the spines of her opponents over the course of the season, as they try to figure out how to dethrone a player who is in the form of her life.

The 25-year-old was all business from the beginning, dropping just 30 games and not losing a single set en route to claiming the women's crown.

What's more, she lost her serve only 3 times in the 7 matches she played.

They say the true mark of champions is how they bounce back from adversity.

When Barty was staring at a 5-1 second-set deficit in the final against American Danielle Collins, she fed off the energy from the crowd and maintained her composure to chip away at that daunting gap and force a tie-break.

Barty won 7 of the final 9 points in the match and her championship-winning point was a powerful cross-court forehand that Collins had no chance whatsoever of reaching.

Barty is now the only active women's player other than Serena Williams to hold Grand Slam titles on all 3 surfaces - grass, clay and hard court.

Next on Barty's radar is the French Open, a title she won in 2019. She skipped the 2020 edition due to the pandemic and retired injured at last year's event, so she will be determined to make a statement return in Paris this year.