Serbia's Novak Djokovic with the Australian Open at Melbourne's Royal Botanic Gardens following his win over Austria's Dominic Thiem
Serbia's Novak Djokovic is the reigning Australian Open champion but he is yet to face Daniil Medvedev in the 2021 final Image Credit: AP

Dubai: Novak Djokovic may be unbeaten in Australian Open finals, but a sponsor seemed to think he’s already won this year’s - before he’s even played it. Ahead of the eight-time champion’s clash with Daniil Medvedev on Sunday, his racquet sponsor Head offered its congratulations in a promotional email.

“Congratulations Novak,” said the email, posted on Twitter by tennis journalist Ben Rothenberg, which described Djokovic as a “record-breaking 9 time Australian Open champion”. The gaffe was quickly rectified. “Oops - we got ahead of ourselves!” a follow-up email said. “What we meant to say is... Good luck Novak in the 2021 Australian Open Final.”

The mistake is perhaps understandable, with top-ranked Djokovic’s eight titles already a record at the Australian Open. However, Russia’s Medvedev takes a 20-match winning streak into the Melbourne final, where he is seeking his first major title.