Roger Federer claimed his 5th Australian Open title © Getty Images
Roger Federer claimed his 5th Australian Open title © Getty Images

It was nothing than a dream final between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer on Sunday, with the latter being crowned as the Australian Open 2017 champion for the 5th time.  It was also Federer’s 18th Grand Slam title. Federer defeated Nadal 6-4, 3-6, 6-1, 3-6 and 6-3. Both the players came together for 35th time in a Grand Slam. Federer extended his lead over Nadal in the all-time major wins list with his first Melbourne Crown since 2010 and his first major singles title win since Wimbledon 2012. It was a surreal moment for many and that included the cricketers across globe. The cricket fraternity expressed their excitement much ahead of the final on Sunday. 

However on the D day, from Ravichandran Ashwin to Harsha Bhogle, the live commentary did not stop over social media. On the other end, Steven Smith was rooting for Federer, despite a broken leg. ‘The Reverend’ David Warner watched the live action from Melbourne. The Swiss player, who was seeded No. 17,  jumped to No. 10 in the world with this victory while Nadal  moved to No. 6. He earned his first win over Nadal in four meetings at the Australian Open and won just his third major final over the Spaniard in nine attempts. Cricket fraternity reacts to Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer Australian Open 2017 final

On receiving the trophy, Federer said, “I’m out of words and Rafa said so many great things. I’d like to congratulate Rafa on an amazing comeback. I don’t think either of us thought we’d be in the finals when we were at your academy four or five years ago. I’d just like to thank my team. It’s been a different last six months. I didn’t think I was going to make it here,” as quoted on theguardian.com.

Let’s take a look at some of the selected tweets from the world of cricket in praise of two tennis greats:

Federer’s most recent win against the Spaniard was in Wimbledon 2007. With this victory, Federer has also become the first man in history to win five or more titles at three different Grand Slam events.