MELBOURNE, Australia — It was a highly unusual Australian Open, beginning with the prologue.

The qualifying tournament was disrupted because of smoke from the bushfires that have devastated large swaths of the country. A new team event, the ATP Cup, changed players’ routines and schedules in January, the start of a new season.

The death of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna on Jan. 26 in a helicopter crash, which killed nine people in Los Angeles, was felt by many during the middle of the tournament in Melbourne, including Bryant’s friend and occasional mentee Novak Djokovic.

“I’ve been watching videos of Kobe and his family every single day since that happened, and it’s devastating,” Djokovic said.

But after all the upheaval and unexpected emotions, the conclusion of the Australian Open was reassuringly familiar for Djokovic.