Andy Murray defeats Novak Djokovic in the final of the ATP World Tour Finals at London’s O2 Arena to ensure he ends tennis season as world number one
ANDY MURRAY is the best tennis player in the world.
No if’s, no but’s, not anymore.
On one of the biggest occasions in the history of tennis, Murray beat Novak Djokovic 6-3 6-4 to silence all those who said his No 1 ranking meant nothing without beating the man he had succeeded.
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The iron-willed Scot dredged one last brilliant performance from the depths of his soul to make yet more history.
In front of an adoring O2 crowd which lived every second of the tensest of evenings with him, Murray defied his exhausted body and mind and the doubters with a masterful display.
It was Djokovic who cracked under the pressure of the winner-takes-all scenario, making uncharacteristic errors and losing the plot totally early in the second set.
The Serb fought until the end, saving two match points.
But Murray was not to be denied and completed the greatest year of his career with one of the sweetest victories of his life.
He becomes the 17th player to end the year as world No 1 and no one but the most rabid of Djokovic’s fans can deny he deserves it.
Murray had never beaten Djokovic without winning the first set and the player who had drawn first blood had prevailed in 15 of their last 16 meetings.
So when Murray failed to convert the first break points of the match, in the sixth game, you wondered if he would rue the missed chances.
But back he came in the eighth to make the crucial breakthrough.
Murray’s relentless pressure on the Djokovic backhand was paying dividends and more errors off that wing allowed the Scot to serve out the set.
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The opening game of the second felt crucial. Djokovic saved two break points with big first serves and Murray netted on a third.
But another poor backhand from the Serb handed the Scot the advantage.
Djokovic’s game was falling apart. He seemed to have won an important rally when Murray was 2-1 30/15 up but buried a routine volley in the net.
When he did the same with yet another backhand to give Murray a double break, the end seemed nigh.
But now the jitters came for Murray. He offered up a first break and sent a forehand long to let Djokovic back into the set and the match.
The Serb fought like hell and memories of the match against Milos Raonic returned when Murray saw two match points come and go.
But on the third, he did it. He did it. He did it.
Speaking court side after the game, Murray said: "It was a very special day, playing Novak in a match like this. We played Slam finals, Olympics. I lost many of them. I'm happy I managed to win today and end the year as No 1.
"This is something I never never expected. My family have been there from the start, made a lot of sacrifices for me. There are a lot of great champions here watching, and we're lucky to have two of them in our boxes, Ivan [Lendl] and Boris [Becker].
"Congratulations to Novak. As I said when I lost to him at the French Open, to hold all four grand slams at once is an incredible achievement and very special. I don't think we'll see it for a long time in our sport."
Djokovic added: "He deserved to win, he played better tennis. I congratulate Andy and his team on a fantastic year."