Djokovic beats Murray to take the Australian Open for a record 5th time

Novak Djokovic may never win as many Wimbledon or U.S. Open titles as Roger Federer or as many French Open championships as Rafa Nadal but when it comes to the Australian Open, the Serbian reigns supreme. On Sunday, Djokovic won his fifth Australian Open crown, beating Andy Murray 7-6(5) 6-7(4) 6-3 6-0 in an old fashioned slugfest where the pair went toe-t-toe like two prize fighters before the Serb knocked the Scotsman out. The only man to win more Australian titles than Djokovic is Roy Emerson, who chalked up six in the 1960s when the grand slams were restricted to amateur players and the Australian Open was played on grass at different cities all over the country.

A record 733,000 [fans] – it’s been a record-breaking year in terms of the fans coming to this Australian Open and it’s truly one of the most remarkable sport events around the world and I’m honoured to be standing here as a champion for a fifth time and be among an elite group of players.

Novak Djokovic

Sunday’s win gave Djokovic his eighth career grand slam singles title, lifting him alongside Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl, Andre Agassi and Fred Perry. Only seven players have won more, headed by Federer with 17 and Nadal on 14, who is tied with Pete Sampras. At age 27, the odds are against Djokovic eclipsing them for the overall record but when it comes to Australia he rules supreme. Play in the final was briefly held up when a banner was unfurled protesting against Australian treatment of refugees, with one person jumping on centre court.

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