Three-time defending champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia is out Down Under after losing in five sets at the Australian Open to Switzerland's Stanislas Wawrinka.
Tuesday night's set-by-set score in Melbourne: 2-6, 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 9-7.
"Epic" seems to be the word headline writers have settled on to describe the match. Or rematch, if you prefer.
Last year, the two also battled for five sets in a match won by Djokovic. This time, Australian Broadcasting writes:
"A Djokovic loss looked well and truly off the cards as he shot out of the gates to take the first set 6-2 in a trot. ... It did not take long for Djokovic to get the advantage in the final set as he broke in the second game, but Wawrinka responded in kind to get it back to 2-2. ...
"With things knotted up at 7-7, a serious case of deja vu hit the Melbourne Park faithful as they casted their minds back to last year's epic fourth-round, 22-game final set. ... When Djokovic sent a forehand volley long at 30-40, Wawrinka could finally celebrate reaching the semi-finals after a gruelling four hours on court."
Djokovic's exit from the tournament is the latest by a familiar name. On Monday, as The Associated Press writes, "Maria Sharapova joined Serena Williams on the fourth-round casualty list" among women.
Those who remain, however, include Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray and Roger Federer on the men's side. On the women's side, 19-year-old Eugenie Bouchard of Canada has reached the semi-finals in her first appearance at the open. Her next opponent is two-time finalist Li Na of China.
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