Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will be squaring off for the 26th time in their careers when they battle for the Miami Open title on Sunday afternoon.
Djokovic leads the head-to-head series 17-8, including 15-6 on hard courts. The top-ranked Serb has won six in a row at Murray’s expense since losing the 2013 Wimbledon final. They most recently faced each other two weeks ago in the Indian Wells semifinals, where Djokovic cruised 6-2, 6-3.
“Even though it’s a straight set victory, I still had to earn it,” the eight-time Grand Slam champion reflected after defeating Murray in the desert. “I thought that he didn’t play close to his highest level. He made a lot of unforced errors, especially from the forehand side. Low percentage of first serves in. That allowed me to obviously step in and be aggressive.”
Murray has picked up the pace in Miami, admitting himself that he is playing far better now than he was in Indian Wells. The fourth-ranked Scot needed three sets to beat both Kevin Anderson and Dominic Thiem, but those wins were preceded by blowouts of Donald Young and Santiago Giraldo. Murray next had no trouble disposing of Tomas Berdych 6-4, 6-4 on Friday.
Djokovic also raised his level when it mattered most. After struggling on multiple occasions through a path featuring opponents Martin Klizan, Steve Darcis, Alexandr Dolgopolov, and David Ferrer, the No. 1 seed turned in his best performance of the fortnight to subdue John Isner 7-6(3), 6-2.
Anything close to that level should be enough for Djokovic on Sunday, because Murray has been mostly hopeless in this matchup of late–especially since winning the second set of their recent Australian Open final. One victory shy of the Indian Wells-Miami double, Djokovic undoubtedly has one more virtuoso performance left in the tank before a much-deserved rest in between hard courts and clay.
Pick: Djokovic in 2 losing 9 games or fewer
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