MELBOURNE – Daniil Medvedev showered Novak Djokovic with praise after losing to him in the Australian Open final, even telling the story of a joint practice session a half-dozen years ago or so in Monte Carlo, where both have homes.
Back then, Djokovic already had been ranked No. 1 and was accumulating Grand Slam titles; Medvedev had yet to crack the Top 300. “He was late," Medvedev joked Sunday. “That’s the only bad thing I remember — that he was late.” Otherwise, the point of Medvedev's story was how friendly and unassuming Djokovic was to a nobody.
Much nicer, it turned out, than Djokovic was in Rod Laver Arena on Sunday, when he dominated Medvedev 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 to win a ninth title at Melbourne Park and 18th major trophy. “He was