From the time they first faced each other on the ATP Tour as teenagers in 2006 until the end of 2008, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray both raced up the rankings and established themselves as future stars of the game. Going into 2009, both were coming off their best seasons to date, with Djokovic having captured his first Grand Slam title at the Australian Open and Murray reaching his first major final at the US Open.
Murray’s run of form continued into the new year as he started the year perfectly in Doha then added a second title a month later in the Netherlands. Then, at the Masters event in Indian Wells, he reached the final before falling to Rafael Nadal. With his record going into the Masters event in Miami at an impressive 20-2 on the season, he won five more matches to reach the final, his fourth at that level in less than a year’s time. In the championship match, he would face Djokovic, the third seed and 2007 champion who was seeking his second title of 2009 after winning in Dubai in February.
After dropping the first four matches of their burgeoning rivalry, Murray finally broke through against Djokovic in the quarterfinals at the Canada Masters in 2008. He followed that up with another victory at the next Masters event in Cincinnati, this time in the final. That victory also marked Murray’s first Masters tournament triumph.
With Murray and Djokovic coming off grueling three-set semifinal wins against Juan Martin del Potro and Roger Federer, respectively, this final in Miami would mainly be determined by who could recover the quickest. The first set seemed to indicate it would be Murray as he dominated the opener 6-2, the fifth straight set he won against the Serb.
In the second, Djokovic changed tactics and started applying more pressure by charging the net constantly against the Scotsman. With his aggressive tactics paying off, Djokovic took a 4-1 lead. However, the fourth-seeded Murray began to dig in, fighting off a couple of set points as he got the match back on serve. Fully engaged in the battle, Murray recorded another break to take a 6-5 lead and proceeded to serve out the match with ease, clinching his third consecutive victory against Djokovic.
2
With the win, Murray notched his second consecutive year of winning three or more titles, having captured five overall in 2008.
5
This was the fifth consecutive match between Djokovic and Murray that was determined in straight sets. The only contest that went the distance was their first in 2006 in Madrid.
12
All 12 of Djokovic’s career singles triumphs to this point came at different tournaments: Miami marked the latest venue he was unable to secure a second title.
