Murray, the defending champion, will slip from second to third in the world rankings after the defeat but can take heart from his superb response to what was an imperious start by Djokovic, who has now won 15 straight matches against top 10 players as well as 10 of the past 14 Masters titles.
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However, Murray took the Serb to five sets in last year’s French Open and heads into the Madrid final as the defending champion, and Djokovic feels the 28-year-old is now a force to be reckoned with on what was once widely regarded as his least favourite surface.
Murray became the first player to ever beat Nadal at the same clay tournament in consecutive years. “Today, in that first game at the beginning of the second [set], he had a few break point chances, but I felt I raised my level as well”.
Murray will also have been heartened by his resilience in the decider when he staved off a couple of championship points and brought up a flurry of break points himself only to see Djokovic fight back again and again.
Murray was the first to book his spot in the final, as he toppled in-form Rafael Nadal with a 7-5, 6-4 victory.
The world No. 1 has now beaten Murray in 12 of their last 13 encounters and extended his unbeaten record against him on clay.
“There were a lot of nerves involved, especially in the third set, but that is what happens when you play at this level against one of the best players in the world, one of the biggest rivals I have throughout my career”.
Again, however, the world number one raised the bar and this time it proved crucial with a decisive break in the sixth game.
In his last three matches against Djokovic (and numerous others) the second serve has been the weak link for Murray and he managed only 35%, 35% and 27% of second serve points won in Australia this year, Shanghai 2015 and Paris 2015 against Novak.
“I played aggressively and to win but he served really well”, said Nadal.
“I think I did well”, Murray said.
“It was kind of back and forth from there and unfortunately I couldn’t quite break, which was a shame because both of us on the break points until that last game were pretty clinical”.
Murray is still expected to be considered one of the main favorites at the French Open, where he lost to Djokovic in last year’s semifinals. “I didn’t think he played his best match in the final previous year”.
Nadal’s positivity and comfort on court was in stark contrast to a year ago, which began with a lack of confidence.
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And despite losing out after an epic final game – where Djokovic survived six deuces and seven break points to hold for the match – Murray was pleased with another good week of work on clay.
