10 things you need to know today: January 31, 2022

Rafael Nadal comes back to win the Australian Open, North Korea test-launches a missile capable of reaching Guam, and more

Rafael Nadal celebrates match point in his Men’s Singles Final of the Australian Open
Rafael Nadal celebrates match point in his Men’s Singles Final of the Australian Open
(Image credit: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images)

1. Rafael Nadal wins record 21st Grand Slam at Australian Open

Tennis star Rafael Nadal of Spain came back after losing the first two sets to beat Russia's Daniil Medvedev 2-6, 6-7 (5), 6-4, 6-4, 7-5, and win the Australian Open. The victory in the nearly five-and-a-half-hour match gave Nadal a record 21st Grand Slam title. The marathon win came after a six-month layoff recovery from surgery for a chronic foot injury that raised speculation about whether Nadal would return to tournament play. Nadal, 35, also had to stay in bed after contracting COVID-19 in December, limiting the time he had to prepare for the trip to Melbourne. He was seeded sixth, so he once appeared unlikely to break his tie of 20 Grand Slam titles with Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, who couldn't play because Australia kicked him out due to his failure to comply with the country's coronavirus vaccination rules.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.