Novak Djokovic was again extended by the troublesome Stan Wawrinka, but this time he survived the insurrection to reach his fifth Australian Open final, where he faces his longstanding peer and rival Andy Murray.
Djokovic and Wawrinka don't simply play best of five sets here. They play five sets. This was the fourth consecutive occasion — and the third in Melbourne — in which they went the distance. Djokovic reversed the outcome of last year's quarter-final, when Wawrinka beat him en route to his first grand slam title.
In a match marked by a series of momentum shifts, the greater consistency of Djokovic was instrumental in the world no 1 seeing off another challenge from the explosive Wawrinka, the steadier Djoker prevailing 7-6 (1), 3-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-0 in a match that gathered steam, though it did conclude as dramatically as the two previous encounters at Melbourne Park, as Djokovic owned the fifth set.
While Djokovic's Sunday night opponent is Murray, the Serb also is seeking to surpass Roger Federer by winning a fifth title at Melbourne Park, becoming the first player to do so. He has eight majors to date, compared to Murray's two. This will be their third meeting in the Australian Open final, Djokovic having taken Murray down here in the finals of 2011 and 2013.
"Andy and I go back to when we were 12 years old," said Djokovic, noting that they were born a week apart. "It's nice to see we're playing another grand slam final."
Asked after the match by Jim Courier if he had carried a "physical" problem, Djokovic said, "yes I did" but did not elaborate. At his subsequent press conference, he added: "It's mental in a way... but nothing that will worry me."
Djokovic conceded his first set of the championships (the second) and was under strain at various other stages as the players traded service breaks. But his steadier style eventually enabled him to survive Wawrinka's "Stan and deliver" firepower, and he maintained composure — or regained it — in the decisive fifth set, when Stan finally faltered.
Djokovic also endured his own moments of frailty, such as a strangely off-key game when he lost his serve and coughed up a 2-0 lead in the fourth set and he also found it difficult to convert break points. It was possible that he had some physical affliction; it was also possible that his only affliction was Wawrinka.
At the end of the third set, Djokovic was so lost in the moment that he appeared not to realise that he had taken the set with a break of serve (6-4), the score having momentarily escaped him. "Sometimes these things happen," he said. "You get carried away by a moment...you can't keep track of the score."
Breaks of serve were numerous, as they had been in the Djoker-Stan 1 (12-10 in the fifth set) in 2013, and Djoker-Stan 2 (9-7 in the fifth). It is a measure of Wawrinka's talents that he broke Djokovic five times in four sets.
Djokovic secured the victory by gaining a second and then third break in the fifth set that provided sufficient insulation – since he had handed back leads in both the third and fourth sets.
The first set was the match writ small. Both players had their moments, both were broken, but at the end, Djokovic was comprehensively superior – he took the tie-break 7-1, just as he would canter ahead and win the fifth set.
When Wawrinka broke serve first in the opening set, the Djoker initially took vengeance on his racquet, which was belted twice as he took his seat.
Most players who lose the lead and drop the first set to Djokovic are already deflated and defeated. But Wawrinka is no ordinary Stan – he can trade blows from the back. His bombastic style can unsettle the Djoker. Wawrinka hits harder, and in the second set, the sturdy Swiss found his range. After evading a break point in the opening game, he snatched the momentum by breaking Djokovic at 3-2 and then served it out to claim the set 6-3.
At this point, Djokovic seemed curiously enervated, without much passion, and restrained in his shotmaking. He had let the Stanimal out of the cage, and was thus pushed out of his comfort zone, and eventually to five sapping sets.
At the press conference, Djokovic suggested that his record in Australian Open finals compared with Murray's — Murray is 0-3, Djokovic 4-0 — "can serve maybe as a slight mental edge. But not much".
Djokovic's victory wasn't entirely convincing, and the Murray camp — now counting coach Amelie Mauresmo — will hold considerable hope of besting the best. But Djoker still finished like a no 1 and has never lost a final in Melbourne.
