Andy Murray won his first major championship in five tries on Monday night, defeating No. 2 Novak Djokovic, 7-6, 7-5, 2-6, 3-6, 6-2, in New York for the U.S. Open title.
Just over a month after claiming the Olympic gold medal in front of his British countrymen at Wimbledon, Murray continued his breakthrough rise with the five-set, four-hour-and-53-minute marathon victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Before the win, Murray had previously lost to Roger Federer three times and Djokovic once in major championships.
Murray started with a two-set lead -- sets that combined to take almost two-and-a-half hours -- and won the first game of the third set, as well. Just as it felt like Murray was on his way, Djokovic took over. The Serbian won four break points in sets three and four, while Murray won zero. The momentum continued in Djokovic's favor in the fourth set as he hit 83% of his first serves in, while Murray struggled to hit 45% of his.
With frustration and possible defeat apparent in Murray's body language, he turned it around to claim the first three games of the final set. Djokovic did win the next two games, but leg cramps helped end his bid for a comeback.
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