In the post-match interview after winning his 21st Grand Slam at the Australian Open Men’s Singles final, Rafael Nadal said he had plenty of energy to play more tournaments.
"One and a half months ago, I would probably have said there is a chance this will be my last Australian Open, but now I have plenty of energy to keep going. I really can’t explain the feelings that I have right now, but I'm going to keep trying my best to come again next year"
Nadal won praise from his opponent, Russian Daniil Medvedev. “"[To] share the court with you is just an honour,” the World No 2 said after the match. Commenting on the long match, eh said it was tough to talk after 5 hours 30 minutes of playing and still losing. “But I want to congratulate Rafa because what he did today, I was amazed...During the match I just tried to play tennis but after the match I asked him, like, 'Are you tired?' Because it was insane.”
The match saw the game briefly interrupted by a person who ran across the court. Later, Medvedev reacted angrily to some spectators calling out while he was serving, eventually prompting the referee to intervene and warn the crowd. “They are idiots, empty-brained,” he said in response to the match umpire. “Their lives must be very bad”.
Medvedev found himself booed by the crowd several times during the match. He had been booed again days earlier when he mentioned Novak Djokovik in his post-match interview after defeating Felix Auger-Aliassime. “When I lost the second set, I asked myself: what would Novak do in this situation?”, Medvedev said, following which he was booed.