PARIS (AP) – Stan Wawrinka won the French Open tennis tournament by beating No. 1-seeded Novak Djokovic 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 in the final Sunday, thwarting Djokovic’s bid to complete a career Grand Slam.
The eighth-seeded Wawrinka, so long in the shadow of his Swiss Davis Cup teammate and pal, Roger Federer, collected his second major title after last year’s Australian Open.
In doing so, Wawrinka put a stop to Djokovic’s 28-match winning streak and left the 28-year-old Serb ruing another close call at Roland Garros. This was the third time in the last four years that Djokovic lost in the final at the clay-court tournament, the only major title he has never won.
This one ended, fittingly, with a down-the-line backhand winner from the 30-year-old Wawrinka. That’s his best stroke and considered among the best in the game. He tossed his racket overhead, then met Djokovic at the net for a hug.
“One day, you will win Roland Garros,” Wawrinka told Djokovic during the post-match ceremony. “You deserve it.”
Wawrinka, who earned 1.8 million euros (about $2 million), was making his 11th French Open appearance, equalling Federer and Andre Agassi for most attempts before winning it.
This was also Djokovic’s 11th French Open, and he has so far been unable to clutch the trophy he so dearly desires. He has won eight Grand Slam titles, with five at the Australian Open, two at Wimbledon and one at the U.S. Open.
He’s made quite clear how much it would mean to him to become the eighth man in tennis history with a full complement of at least one title from each major.
“I can tell you,” Djokovic told the crowd, “that I will keep trying to win this trophy.”
