Top 5 Grand Slam Matches of 2018

The US Open came to an end last night with Djokovic defeating Del Potro to win his 3rd US Open title and his 14th major overall, equalling the great Pete Sampras' grand slam haul.

With this, all the grand slams of 2018 are now over and it is time for us to have a look at some of the best matches played at the majors this year. It is very difficult to pick out the best of the lot as the tennis world has witnessed some scintillating encounters this year.

But here is the list of the matches that I feel deserve to be in the top 5 this year.

#5 Federer vs Cilic, Australian Open Final

This match would surely go down as a classic in Australian open history. Federer defeated Cilic to win his 20th major and 6th Australian Open title.

At the start, it looked like Federer was easily going to clinch the title as he comfortably took the first set. But then, the Croat bounced back by winning the second set in a tie-break. Federer responded by winning the third set 6-3 and looked on course to victory having broken Cilic in the fourth to go 3-1 up.

But Cilic refused to bow out. He broke back and took the fourth set 6-4. Unfortunately for Cilic, it was all downhill for him from that point on. Federer broke Cilic early in the set and never looked back to win the set 6-1 and his 6th Australian Open title.

An emotional Federer after defeating Cilic to win his 6th Australian Open and his 20th major overall

#4 Marco Cecchinato vs Novak Djokovic, French Open quarter-final

Arguably one of the biggest shocks of this year's grand slam matches happened when journeyman Marco Cecchinato defeated Djokovic in four sets.

From emotional outbursts to rallies to fantastic shot making, this match had it all as both men produced some scintillating tennis on the court. To everyone's shock, Cecchinato took the first two sets and looked on course to reach his first ever grand slam semi-final.

But the Serb responded by winning the third set 6-1. Things looked cool for Novak in the fourth set also as he was 4-1 up. But Cecchinato came back and took the set to a tie-break. Both players were evenly matched in the tie-break and Novak even had multiple set points to take the match into the fifth set. But he failed to capitalize and ultimately Cecchinato won in four sets.

Cecchinato produced one of the shocks of the year when he defeated Djokovic at 2018 French open

#3 Rafael Nadal vs Juan Martin del Potro, Wimbledon quarter-final

Yet another classic from this year's grand slams is the match between Nadal and Del Potro. Over the years these two have produced some epic encounters and this match was no different.

Nadal took the opening set, only for Del Potro to bounce back by winning the 2nd and 3rd set. Nadal then took the fourth set and broke Del Potro in the fifth game of the final set. He then kept his cool for the remaining games and finished the match off to reach his first Wimbledon semi-final since 2011.

Both the players embrace at the net after their classic encounter

#2 Djokovic vs Nadal Wimbledon 2018 semi-final

Another marathon match from this year's Wimbledon which makes our list of top 5 grand slam matches. Djokovic-Nadal encounters never fail to deliver and this match wasn't any different.

Djokovic had arrived at Wimbledon in poor form while Nadal was full of confidence having just won his 11th French Open title. Both the player split the first two sets and Djokovic won the third set on an epic tie-break before play had to be suspended due to the 11 pm curfew at the All England Tennis Club.

The next day, Rafa bounced backed to win the fourth set and the match went to the decider set. The fifth set was an epic struggle with both the gladiators refusing to bow down. But at 8-9 with Nadal serving to stay in the match, Djokovic pulled the trigger and broke Nadal to love to advance to the finals of a grand slam for the first time since 2016.

This match proved to be a turning point for Djokovic

#1 Dominic Thiem vs Rafael Nadal, US Open quarterfinal

The young Austrian has a history of performing at his best against Nadal and he gave Nadal a run for his money in his first ever US Open quarter-final.

Thiem got off to a great start and bageled Nadal in the first set, much to the shock of the Arthur Ashe crowd. Nadal then bounced back to win two consecutive sets as Thiem's level considerably dropped.

The fourth set then went into a tie-break and Thiem produced some fantastic tennis to win the fourth set. The fifth set again brought some great tennis out of the two players. It again went to a tie-break but this time Rafa managed to hold his nerve and won the marathon encounter in 5 sets.

A jubilant Nadal after defeating Thiem in a US Open classic