Stefanos Tsitsipas’ form, mental strength excite John McEnroe ahead of Australian Open final with Novak Djokovic

John McEnroe feels the memory of his French Open final defeat in 2021 will spur on Stefanos Tsitsipas against Novak Djokovic in the Australian Open title match on Sunday.

Tsitsipas and Djokovic have been the standout players over the course of the Grand Slam fortnight in Melbourne.

They will do battle for the first major of the year on Sunday, while there is the added incentive of knowing that whoever wins will take over as world No. 1.

Djokovic has a commanding head-to-head record, leading 10-2, with the biggest win coming in the final of the French Open two years ago.

Tsitsipas held a two-set lead at Roland Garros, but could not get over the line as Djokovic fought back to win in five sets.

McEnroe feels that loss will be front and centre for Tsitsipas, and may act as motivation for the Greek in what is “the best possible final.”

“It’s the best possible final because you have two players who battle for the No. 1 spot in the rankings and that alone makes it a little more special,” McEnroe said. “Tsitsipas played this final at the French two years ago, led two sets to love but wasn’t able to finish him off so it will feed him on Sunday. He’s been positive on how he’s been able to learn from that, so we’ll see.”

Tsitsipas has been knocking on the door at the top of the game, and McEnroe feels it is time for the 24-year-old to break through.

“He’s excited, he’s hungry,” McEnroe said. “We need to see the younger players to show up in the Grand Slams, in the great finals. Of course, he’s not as young as someone like (Carlos) Alcaraz, but he’s still young even if he’s not a newcomer anymore. They have to prove that they’re as hungry as (Rafael) Nadal or Djokovic or (Roger) Federer before. It’s a perfect opportunity for him to do that.”

Although McEnroe is tipping Djokovic to win in four sets, he feels the match could hinge on how Tsitsipas handles the pressure.

“It falls down to how well Tsitsipas can hold his nerves when he gets an opportunity during the match,” McEnroe said. “He probably saw (Aryna) Sabalenka do that Saturday (in winning the women’s final), so this is a big moment for him.

“His forehand is absolutely huge, he’s been hitting it so big, better to me than I’ve ever seen it before. That’s gonna have to be a big weapon if he wants to beat Novak.

“He will also need a lot of points with his serve which is hard to do against Novak, we’re all aware of that and he is too, but it will be key. He has to do that if we want to have a great final.”

Tsitsipas has looked suspect mentally on occasions, but McEnroe feels the Greek’s head is now in the right place.

“He’s in a much better place, yes,” McEnroe said. “I remember when I was coaching in the Laver Cup a few months ago, there were times where I could feel that he was… fragile.

“He had a tough summer, he lost it mentally against (Nick) Kyrgios in Wimbledon, then lost in the first round at the US Open.

“He didn’t seem as if his head was where it needed to be. But now, it does. And you see the result of that. You see confidence.

“He’s always been confident but now I got a sense that he really believes that he can do this and that’s exciting to see.”

– – –