Federer sees off Nadal to clinch Australian Open title

"Tennis is a tough sport. There are no draws but if there was going to be one tonight I would have been happy to share it with Rafa."

Roger Federer finally clinched an 18th grand slam title by winning a five-set thriller against Rafael Nadal to become Australian Open champion.

Federer and Nadal produced one of the finest contests their rivalry has ever seen but it was the Swiss that prevailed, winning 6-4 3-6 6-1 3-6 6-3 after three hours and 38 minutes on Rod Laver Arena.