Djokovic congratulated Jannik Sinner on his victory, with the ATP number one having won the tournament for the second year running.

Federer’s agent Tony Godsick likes Sinner, who just defeated Alexander Zverev in Melbourne for his third Grand Slam title.

The success came despite the Italian having been feeling unwell earlier in the tournament, which was played in the middle of summer in Melbourne.

Roger Federer ‘surprised’ to play 2018 Australian Open final indoors

Such high temperatures, which can often fluctuate between 30 and 40 degrees celsius during the event, generated history in the 2018 Australian Open final between Federer and Marin Cilic.

For the first time ever, the men’s final was played entirely indoors at Melbourne Park, with the roof closed as the extreme heat policy came into play, despite it being an evening match.

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Having beaten Cilic in the 2017 Wimbledon final, Federer issued the Croatian with another defeat, winning a five-set thriller 6-2, 6-7, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1.

Asked for his thoughts on the decision to play indoors in his winning press conference, Federer responded: “I wasn’t sure if it was good for me or not, to play under the roof or not.

“Of course, I backed myself in sort of indoor conditions. This is where my first success ever came. I do think back that usually when I play indoors, it’s good for me.

“But I didn’t mind the heat, to be honest. I thought maybe for a bigger guy like Marin, maybe it’s also going to slow him down faster throughout the match.

“At the end, it’s not my decision. They kept me posted along the way. I was surprised to hear they had the heat rule in place for a night match. I never heard that before.

“When I arrived to the courts, I was totally ready to play outdoors. They told me they think it will probably be indoor. Then they kept me posted along the way.

“Half an hour before, we got the word that it’s going to be indoors. For me, it doesn’t change anything in the preparation, to be honest. I was ready for either.”

Marin Cilic not asked about closed roof before 2018 Australian Open final vs Roger Federer

Federer clinched his sixth and final Australian Open title that year, before going on to lose his last-ever Grand Slam final at Wimbledon in 2019 against Djokovic.

The Swiss legend was, of course, adept across all surfaces, as well as being a superstar both indoors and outdoors.

But he famously enjoyed his greatest success on the grass courts of Wimbledon, with a record eight triumphs at the All England Club.

READ MORE: Pete Sampras once predicted who would win a Wimbledon final if he faced prime Roger Federer at his best

Cilic meanwhile won his one and only Grand Slam title at the 2014 US Open, with the Croatian icon having also shared his verdict on the closed roof in Melbourne following his loss to Federer.

Sharing if he was asked what he thought about closing the roof, and indeed if it was the right decision, Cilic said: “Well, no, they didn’t ask me.

“They just came to me to tell me that they are thinking about the decision, and they are going to make the final decision just around 7pm, just slightly before the match.

“I didn’t mind to have the roof closed, but it was a huge difference in temperature from having outside 38, then when you came in, it was like 23, 24, I don’t know. It was way cooler than I expected.”

He did, however, rightfully remain proud of his tournament, with the sixth seed having beaten top seed Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals.

Asked if he thought the closed roof was an advantage for his opponent, he replied: “I don’t know. Just looking at my own side, I didn’t feel those conditions before.

“I had a slow start in the match, losing straightaway my two service games, then catching up most of the time.

“But looking overall, I’m really pleased with the performance. Played great tennis over these two weeks. I had tough matches, tough opponents, beating Rafa, reaching here a final, which is definitely amazing.

“Looking at my own game, I think I improved a lot. I’m playing great tennis. That’s really exciting for me for this 2018.”

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