Rivalries of the year 2013: Novak Djokovic vs Stanislas Wawrinka

It was then that both played a set which was arguably the best witnessed this year. The decider saw it all. Starting with trading breaks in the first two games of the set, it had everything in it which took us to the edge of our seats. The players held serve at love at times while also being tested many a time at deuce. Both went for the kill though, despite looking extremely tired. While Djokovic improved his net game plus forehand, Stan reduced his unforced errors considerably as the set progressed. Both were saving themselves admirably standing on the threshold of defeat.

Finally the Serb, who was slightly better prepared mentally, broke Stan in the 22nd game of the final set to win the most absorbing contest ever witnessed this year. It was a sad moment for Wawrinka who came very close to shocking the Serb. But it was close and it was anybody’s ball game for most of the match. Only one of them could move to the quarterfinals, but the vanquished Swiss stole the hearts of all who watched.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia rips his shirt off as he celebrates winning in five sets in his fourth round match against Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland during day seven of the 2013 Australian Open at Melbourne Park on January 20, 2013 in Melbourne, Australia

It would be an understatement if someone said that it was this match which made him scale greater heights as a player in 2013. His performances in the remaining Grand Slams kept on improving since that epic “Down Under.” Fittingly so, he got another opportunity to play a hair-raising match against Djokovic towards the end of the season when he locked horns with the Serb in the semifinal of the US Open. If anything, he had to prove to the world that it was no fluke when he stretched the Serb to the limit at Melbourne Park.

The US Open semifinal between the two started exactly the same way as their of the fourth round encounter at the Australian Open. The Swiss broke Djokovic in the third game of the set as he did in Australia. He, in fact, broke him again to win the next two games, before giving one of the two breaks back to the Serb. However Stan redeemed himself and broke the 2011 champion one more time to win the first set 6-2. After having lost the opening set, Djokovic was fortunate to have just the type of start he required to gain some momentum in the second set as he held his first service game with a love hold. In the fifth game of the set though, Wawrinka, produced some unbelievable stroke play, to break the Serb and go 3-2 up.

Nole pressed the panic button just at the right time though and began to serve well for the first time in the match. In the eighth game, a couple of unforced errors from the Swiss helped Djokovic make a comeback in the second set as he raced to a 5-4 lead by virtue of serving ahead, though he was a break down earlier. Stan managed to stay in the set by serving better in the next two games and dragged the contest to a tie-breaker. Playing the important points well, the Serb took the set and leveled the match at one set apiece.

Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland celebrates a point during his men’s singles semifinal match against Novak Djokovic of Serbia at the 2013 US Open on September 7, 2013.

Stan, now showing some weariness, was on the verge of getting broken by the Serb in the first game of the third set, which would have proved disastrous for the Swiss No.2. The one-handed backhander however, survived the scare and led 1-0. It was going well for both players who were holding their respective serves with ease until the eighth game of the set which saw the 10th ranked Swiss play a couple of unbelievable returns that proved to be decisive. He took the third set 6-3 and found himself just a set away in reaching his first Grand Slam final. No matter how good you are, it is quite common for anyone to get nervous when he or she is just an inch closer to achieving a landmark. Probably the same thing has happened to Stan too. He even left the court for treatment after having been broken in the fourth set. The relentless Serb won the set without much fuss and sweat and took the match to the decider.

The fifth set though, did not produce a thriller of a contest like what we saw in Australia. The Swiss looked in no mood to go for a kill and was in a subdued state, leaving destiny to take care of the rest. The defending champion was impeccable in the set and was determined to cut short the duration of the match. In the end it was Novak Djokovic, the fitter of the two, who survived the marathon and as per Darwin’s theory, emerged supreme after a grueling contest.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia hugs Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland after winning his men’s singles semifinal match at the 2013 US Open on September 7, 2013. Djokovic defeated Wawrinka 2-6 7-6(4) 3-6 6-3 6-4.

These two have since become friends and have even played doubles together. The most important ingredient for a rivalry to blossom is the mutual respect that two players have for each other. That mutual respect, in turn, is the byproduct of intensely close battles that two people engage in whenever they collide. Stan and Nole’s rivalry is one of its kind. The two have played their heart out both in Melbourne Park and New York, making it only the second best rivalry of this season, next only to Nadal and Djokovic. No one now remembers Stan’s other defeats this year, thanks to the special matches with which the Serb was able to supplement the Swiss.