Novak Djokovic wins his fifth Australian Open title in sensational style

Novak Djokovic with the Australian Open title

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic continued his dominance at Melbourne Park with a four-set win over Andy Murray in the final of the 2015 Australian Open. The Serb won his fifth title after beating Murray 7-6, 6-7, 6-3, 6-0 in three hours and 39 minutes.

Note: You can catch all the moments from the Australian Open on Sony Liv Sports here.

With the win, Djokovic becomes the first person in the Open Era to win five Australian Open titles, and only the second man after Roy Emerson to do so in the history of the sport. Djokovic’s entry into this elite club has has firmly established his status as not only the best player in the world right now, but also one of the greatest players of all time.

It was a match that had everything: long rallies, outrageous winners, slips, injuries and drama. Ultimately, it was Djokovic who had that little extra in the tank, as he triumphed in one of the best Australian Open finals in recent times.

Dramatic start to the match

It was practically impossible to differentiate the two players in the first two sets of the match. The first set saw both players breaking each other’s serve twice to ensure that things would remain dead even, necessitating a tie-breaker. Djokovic came out on top in overtime to take the lead, and the crowd got on its feet to applaud the completion of a set of the highest quality.

However, Murray was not in the mood to throw in the towel. The second set saw four breaks of serve, two for each player, as another tiebreak was needed to settle the set. This time, it was the Scot who dominated the proceedings, comfortably taking the tie-break to level the match at one set apeice.

Djokovic fights against all odds

Djokovic clearly looked to be struggling physically as the third set started. The first two sets took two hours and 30 minutes, which seemed to have taken a toll on the 2013 champion. But yet again, Djokovic just stepped up his game at the right time to get the crucial break of serve and place one hand on the trophy.

The fourth set was a bit of an anti-climax after the exhilarating pace of the entire match, as Djokovic strolled through to register a bagel. Murray seemed overly frustrated with his play in the third set and produced a rash of errors as the Serb clinched the title with a sense of calm.

Despite the scoreline though, the match was fiercely contested, and it could have gone either way after the completion of the second set.

Stats attack

The serve wasn’t the strong suit for either player, but it could also be said that the potent returns that the two men possess had a say in that. Th match witnessed 14 service breaks in total, and Djokovic broke the Murray serve on nine ocassions to confirm his billing as the best returner in the world. Djokovic also hit more winners (53-41) and committed fewer unforced errors (40-49) than his opponent.

The stats seem to indicate that the match was rather one-sided, but they only tell half the story. On another day, the match could have easily gone in favour of Murray. The Scot was unable to deal with his nerves towards the home stretch, and Djokovic fully capitalized on his opponent’s meltdown.

At the end of the day though, it was a high quality match that fully entertained spectators everywhere. Murray will leave Melbourne Park with a touch of regret on failing to win the title in his fourth attempt in the final, but for Djokovic, it is a time to celebrate.