Birthday boy Andy marks Novak’s card
IF Andy Murray had compiled a wish-list for his 29th birthday, a long awaited victory over Novak Djokovic would surely have been fairly high up.
Such is the air of invincibility that Djokovic has cultivated across all corners of the globe that even the elite tend to look beaten before they have even stepped on court with the world No 1.
Murray could have been forgiven for entering yesterday’s Rome Masters final with an air of pessimism. He had lost 12 of his previous 13 matches with the Serb, and had never triumphed in four encounters on the red dirt.
But with a buccaneering performance in the Italian capital, Murray reversed the trend with a thrilling display of power and aggression, overwhelming Djokovic 6-3, 6-3. With the action getting under way in Roland Garros in a week’s time, it was a vitally important psychological blow. “To be honest I haven’t won many matches on my birthday before, never mind tournaments,” Murray joked.
It might be a tad over the top to declare the Scot the favourite to land the French Open title, but on current evidence he is the greatest threat to Djokovic’s chances of finally completing the career Grand Slam in three weeks’ time.
“I’m in a better place than last year for sure,” said Murray. “I won a lot of matches at this time of year 12 months ago, won Madrid but I think I have made some improvements in my game. My serve has been a big improvement for me.”
On a damp, misty afternoon plagued by perpetual drizzle, it was Murray’s serene calm and ability to perfectly execute a well thought-out game plan which won the day. Djokovic had few answers to Murray’s determination to attack his second serve, consistently forcing the Serb into deep, defensive positions, unable to push Murray from corner to corner.
Many of Murray’s recent encounters with his great rival have been characterised by the Scot’s relentless chuntering at himself and his support team, but this time it was the usually serene Djokovic maintaining a steady monologue, which boiled over into outright rage towards the end of the match.
With the rain making movement treacherous on the sticky clay, Djokovic was furious with the umpire’s refusal to postpone proceedings.
“I don’t want to play any more!” he screamed at one point. Murray looked on impassively before clinching victory a couple of games later with a thundering backhand down the line.
Afterwards he was keen to point out that Djokovic had perhaps not been at his best after a draining semi-final with Kei Nishikori which only finished at 11.15pm on Saturday.
“Novak has played extremely well this year,” he said. “He fought hard all the way to the end today and it’s hard coming back from a long match the night before.”
In the women’s final, Serena Williams clinched her 70th career title and her fourth in Rome with a 7-6, 6-3 victory over her 21-year-old compatriot Madison Keys, ending a nine-month title drought and a string of shock losses in major finals.
She now heads to Paris, looking to defend her French Open title for the first time in her career. “I feel more calm and I don’t feel stress to have to win,” said Williams. “I just am happy to be out here.”
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