Novak Djokovic beats Andy Murray to collect fifth Miami Open title

Andy Murray was once again bested by Novak Djokovic, as the world number one collected his fifth Miami Open title on 5 April.

Djokovic, who had already recorded two victories over Murray in 2015 in the final of the Australian Open and at the semi-final stage of the BNP Paribas Open in March, needed three sets to secure a 7-6, 4-6, 6-0 victory on a gloriously sunny day at Cranford Park.

There was preciously little to choose between the two players in the opening set, with Djokovic prevailing via the aid of a tie-break.

The Serb was then broken at a pivotal time with the score at 5-4 in the second, but any hopes of a courageous comeback from Murray were confidently dispatched in the third as the reigning champion sealed his latest triumph in emphatic fashion.

"It was just a physical battle between the two of us that play a similar game," Djokovic was quoted as saying after the match by the ATP's official website.

"We haven't served that well, so we haven't had that many free points, as a matter of fact. With first or second serves, we needed to earn every single point, to work for it. That's why this particular match was very tough."

Murray was understandably disappointed after suffering a seventh successive loss to the impressive Djokovic, and admitted that he was not quite able to reach the level of his long-time rival just yet.

"I'm not quite there with Novak, but I feel like I'm getting closer," he conceded afterwards.

"He serves well, he runs well, he moves exceptionally well. Physically he's in great shape; he hits the ball well off both sides. So, yeah, he does most things on the tennis court well. That's why he's the number one player in the world."

In the women's draw, Serena Williams underlined her dominance with a commanding 6-2, 6-0 victory over Carla Suárez Navarro.