Novak Djokovic beat Andy Murray 7-6, 4-6, 6-0 for the ATP 1000 Miami Open title, his fifth in total. In winning, he also created history, becoming the first man to win the Indian Wells-Miami double back to back.
There is a good reason no one has managed to do the Indian Wells-Miami double back to back- to do it even once is enough of an effort, and the fact Djokovic has now done it three times (2011, 2014-2015) is both revealing, character-wise, and, to anyone who has been following his career, unsurprising.
Few work harder than Djokovic, and to win the Indian Wells-Miami double, you have to work very hard. You have to win twelve matches over three and a half weeks, fourteen if you are unseeded, in brutally hot conditions, in the heat of the desert or the humid heat of the coast. The heat is not your only enemy, either- the wind puts up quite a fight, too.
As if that were not enough to contend with, you then have the world’s top competition in the draw. Djokovic had already battled past Federer in the three set Indian Wells final, and then conquered Klizan, Darcis, Dolgopolov, Ferrer and Isner on his way to make the Miami final versus Murray.
Murray had already been one of Djokovic’s vanquished rivals on his way to the Indian Wells-Miami double. The Serbian had torn him apart in the semi-finals in the Californian desert two weeks ago.
Djokovic was in no condition to be tearing anyone apart in the final today though. The world no.1 had been struggling all week, dropping sets to Klizan and Dolgopolov, and though he had played brilliantly at times against Isner in the semi-finals, the effort of the last three weeks looked to have taken its toll on him as he and Murray faced off for a title they have won six times between them.
Murray looked, from the get-go, like a third Miami title, a nice gift to himself before his wedding, was within his grasp. The Scot was in arguably some of his best form of the year as he tried to end a run of six defeats to the Serb, starting the match aggressively and breaking an out of rhythm Djokovic at 1-1 with a forehand winner.
Djokovic, though tired, was still ready for the fight, as he always is, and broke back immediately, courtesy of a Murray forehand error.
At 3-3, Murray broke again, taking control of points early, and putting together inspired patches of play, but once again he could not consolidate, his second serve still a liability against one of the game’s best returns of serve, a status not lost even when out of form, and was broken back.
The first set went into a tiebreak, and Murray’s forehand broke down early, an error handing Djokovic a mini-break to go 2-0 up. Another Murray error and Djokovic had two mini-breaks and a 3-0 lead. Djokovic double-faulted to hand back one of the mini-breaks for 4-1, but he held onto his lead and had three set points at 6-3. The Serbian sealed the set as Murray made yet another error, this time on his backhand.
In the second set, Murray hung with Djokovic through the early stages, surviving four break points at 1-1 to hold for 2-1. That resistance was crucial and bolstered the Scot’s confidence. He hung with Djokovic all the way to the business end of the set, to 5-4 returning, and earned himself three set points with a forehand passing shot off a Djokovic smash, the Scot’s feel earning him the point as he just got his racket onto the ball and sent it past the Serb for a winner.
The Scot then converted set point, stepping in on the Djokovic second serve, and flying into a backhand cross-court winner.
On the changeover, the world no.1 argued with the umpire about a shouting incident as the players took to their seats. The umpire had given him a warning for shouting at his box, claiming it had scared a ball-boy and that ‘it did not look very good.’
Neither was the tired looking Djokovic game. But the Serbian, fired up by the warning, found new life, and as he did to Murray in the Australian Open final, he found a second wind while Murray, exhausted by the effort of winning his first set in a best of three match against Djokovic since the 2012 WTF, was left bent over huffing and puffing watching the Serbian pull away into the distance.
Djokovic broke him in the opening game of the third set, then twice more before serving for the match at 5-0. The world No.1 fought off a final push from his long-term rival, saving break point as he forced a Murray error (one of 48 from Murray in the match) with an aggressive forehand. He then beat Murray at his own game, earning championship point with a winning lob.
Djokovic won the match with a game rarely seen on the ATP tour in 2015- he served out wide and then volleyed,sealing the historic win with a winning backhand volley on the stretch.
Djokovic had created history with a performance in which he had repeated history, too. Time and time again he has seemingly been the more tired player on the court, only to wear down his opponent, bringing them down and beyond his own levels of exhaustion, and then finding an extra gear, and tearing away for the win. He inflicted that perfect pacing against Murray, and will do it, no doubt, again.
Whatever other historic feats he pulls off in the process remains to be seen, but going into the clay season, with his Roland Garros nemesis out of form, and no one else in sight looking to be a contender, the greatest piece of history, the career Grand Slam, could be there for the taking, if he can just find that extra gear in a history making year come the first weekend of June.
Commentary by Christian Deverille.
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