Nowhere was that version of Wawrinka seen more often, or more devastatingly, than in Melbourne, where fans came to know him simply as the “Stanimal.”
From 2013 to 2019, Wawrinka faced Djokovic – at the very peak of his powers – seven times at Grand Slams, taking at least two sets off the 24-time major champion on each occasion.
Their 2013–2015 trilogy were all five-set epics. The most famous came at Australian Open 2014 in the quarterfinal, when Wawrinka overcame Djokovic 2-6 6-4 6-2 3-6 9-7.
He backed it up with a four-set semifinal victory over Tomas Berdych before completing his Melbourne masterpiece by defeating then world No.1 Rafael Nadal in four sets to claim his first Grand Slam title.
For Wawrinka, the belief that he could climb the sport’s highest mountains had been forged a year earlier. In the fourth round of Australian Open 2013, he pushed Djokovic for more than five hours, eventually falling 1-6 7-5 6-4 6-7(5) 12-10 – a defeat that proved transformative.
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“It was a really tough loss, but that was the first time that something clicked in me mentally,” Wawrinka told The Sit Down.
“I started to believe that I was going to be able to beat them. That I was going to be able to do it again, and again – and that’s what happened.”
Wawrinka went on to reach a career-high ranking of world No.3 and capture 16 ATP titles, including Grand Slam triumphs over Djokovic at Roland Garros in 2015 and the US Open in 2016, as well as an Olympic gold medal in doubles alongside Roger Federer.