Melbourne, Australia (Sports Network) - World No. 1 Novak Djokovic made
some history on Sunday when he beat Andy Murray to become the first player in
the Open Era to capture three straight Australian Open titles.
Djokovic dropped a first-set tiebreak before mounting a comeback for a
6-7 (2-7), 7-6 (7-3), 6-3, 6-2 victory over the third-seeded Murray in the
men's final at Melbourne Park's Rod Laver Arena. Djokovic avenged a loss
against Murray in September's U.S. Open final, as Murray was shooting for
back-to-back Grand Slam titles.
Murray had been a perfect 10-0 this season.
The 25-year-old Djokovic also captured the Aussie Open title in 2008, which
means four of his six career major titles have come Down Under. The super Serb
has won five of the last nine Grand Slam titles overall, which included three
of the four majors in 2011.
In addition to his Aussie title last year, Djokovic was also the runner-up at
the French and U.S. Opens in 2012.
The U.S. Open and Olympic champion Murray, who titled in Sydney three weeks
ago, has been the Aussie Open runner-up in three of the last four years. The
Scot lost to Djokovic here in 2011 and to Roger Federer in the 2010 Oz finale.
Murray is now 1-5 in his career major finals.
Djokovic improved to 11-7 lifetime versus his good friend and fellow
25-year-old Murray, including a 3-1 record at the Slams.
The Belgrade native Djokovic played in a Grand Slam final for the eighth
time in the last 10 majors, dating back to the 2010 U.S. Open. The only two
misses in that span were the 2011 French and last year at Wimbledon,
when he lost in the semifinals at each event.
Djokovic, playing in his first tournament of 2013, now owns 35 career titles
on the ATP World Tour.
The 6-foot-2 Djokovic outlasted Rafael Nadal in the longest-ever Grand
Slam final here in Melbourne a year ago.
The Sports Network