DJOKOVIC DOWNS MURRAY (WHAT’S NEW?) FOR MIAMI TITLE BY RICKY DIMON

Written by: on 5th April 2015
Miami Open tennis tournament
DJOKOVIC DOWNS MURRAY (WHAT'S NEW?) FOR MIAMI TITLE BY RICKY DIMON

epa04693213 Novak Djokovic of Serbia kisses the championship trophy after defeating Andy Murray of Great Britain in the final of the Miami Open tennis tournament on Key Biscayne, Miami, Florida, USA, 05 April 2015. EPA/ERIK S. LESSER  |

Djokovic downs Murray (what’s new?) for Miami Open title

 

By Ricky Dimon

 

What’s the only thing hotter than the current heat wave in Miami? Novak Djokovic, of course.

 

Djokovic pulled off the spring hard-court Masters 1000 double by winning the Miami Open on Sunday afternoon. The world No. 1 scored another victory over familiar foe Andy Murray, prevailing 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-0 after two hours and 46 minutes.

 

Now 25-2 on the season, Djokovic has won 23 of his last 24 matches. He owns three titles, all of them huge–Indian Wells, Miami, and also the Australian Open. Additionally, the Serb improved to 18-8 lifetime against Murray and has won seven in a row in the head-to-head series.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia in action against Andy Murray of Great Britain during the final of the Miami Open tennis tournament on Key Biscayne, Miami, Florida, USA, 05 April 2015. EPA/RHONA WISE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Djokovic just recently destroyed Murray in the desert, but this one was more competitive right from the start–albeit not all the way to the finish. Murray seized an early break of serve and although he gave it back, the Scot managed to force a tiebreaker. Even after dropping the ‘breaker, Murray made another recovery to take the second with a break at 5-4.

 

Not unlike in their Melbourne final, however, the world No. 4 wilted at the end. An exhausted Murray offered little resistance in the third as Djokovic cruised without the loss of a single game.

 

“It’s tough, because it was obviously pretty brutal conditions out there,” the runner-up lamented. “He was stronger than me at the end, for sure.”

Novak Djokovic of Serbia holds the championship trophy after defeating Andy Murray of Great Britain in the final of the Miami Open tennis tournament on Key Biscayne, Miami, Florida, USA, 05 April 2015. EPA/ERIK S. LESSER

 

“It was just a physical battle between the two of us that play similar game,” Djokovic said. “We [didn’t serve] that well, so we [didn’t have] that many free points. With first or second serves, we needed to earn every single point, to work for it. That’s why this particular match was very tough.”

 

Both players can now prepare for the clay-court swing, which begins this upcoming week in Houston and Casablanca. The first clay Masters 1000 of the year will take place later this month in Monte-Carlo.

 

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand.

Topics: , , , , ,








10sBalls Top Stories

In Case You Missed It

EUGENIE BOUCHARD NAMED 2018 TENNIS CANADA FEMALE PLAYER OF THE YEAR / EUGENIE BOUCHARD NOMMÉE JOUEUSE DE L’ANNÉE 2018 DE TENNIS CANADA thumbnail

EUGENIE BOUCHARD NAMED 2018 TENNIS CANADA FEMALE PLAYER OF THE YEAR / EUGENIE BOUCHARD NOMMÉE JOUEUSE DE L’ANNÉE 2018 DE TENNIS CANADA

Tennis Canada announced on Wednesday that Eugenie Bouchard is the winner of the 2018 Excellence Awards in the Female Player of the Year and Singles Player of the Year categories.
TENNIS NEWS • CALIFORNIA CHAMPIONSHIPS • TOMMY HAAS, TAYLOR FRITZ, STEVE JOHNSON, MARDY FISH AND MORE thumbnail

TENNIS NEWS • CALIFORNIA CHAMPIONSHIPS • TOMMY HAAS, TAYLOR FRITZ, STEVE JOHNSON, MARDY FISH AND MORE

Time to get tickets to watch! Surly you have heard about The Largest Open Tennis Event in America!
TENNIS NEWS • RAFA NADAL CONFIRMS RETURN TO PRACTICE, EYES ABU DHABI EXHIBITION AND AUSTRALIAN SUMMER thumbnail

TENNIS NEWS • RAFA NADAL CONFIRMS RETURN TO PRACTICE, EYES ABU DHABI EXHIBITION AND AUSTRALIAN SUMMER

According to Uncle Toni, Rafael Nadal was supposed to be back at practice on either Dec. 4 or 5. Well, better late than never!
Conchita Martínez prepara la temporada 2019 de Karolina Pliskova en Tenerife thumbnail

Conchita Martínez prepara la temporada 2019 de Karolina Pliskova en Tenerife

Española y checa ya trabajaron juntas durante el pasado Open de Estados Unidos
ALEJANDRO’S FAVORITE PHOTOS FOR 10SBALLS FROM SOME OF THIS YEAR’S TOURNAMENTS thumbnail

ALEJANDRO’S FAVORITE PHOTOS FOR 10SBALLS FROM SOME OF THIS YEAR’S TOURNAMENTS

Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia hits a forehand to Kaia Kanepi of Estonia during her second round match at the Nature Valley International tennis tournament in Eastbourne, Great Britain, on Tuesday, June 26, 2018.