#360view: Djokovic is way ahead of the field

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  • A league of his own: Novak Djokovic (r) celebrates while Andy Murray looks dejected.

    As far as grand slam finals go, Sunday’s Australian Open match between Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray was definitely a forgettable one.

    While the similarity in their playing styles never really made for a compelling match-up, Sunday’s clash was particularly lifeless.

    It was riddled with unforced errors (65 from Murray and 41 from Djokovic), had endless rallies that mostly felt like they had no purpose, and lacked consistent energy throughout the three hours.

    It was clear from the start that Murray was struggling with his focus as he hit more balls into the net than a footballer practicing penalty kicks in front of an empty goal. It felt like he used up all his mental capacity to power through to the final and there was nothing left when he got there.

    Granted, Murray tried to fight in the second and third sets, but it also has to be said that after a dreary opener, he managed to lull Djokovic into a level of mediocrity that evened things up a bit.

    Besides the high error count, Murray’s second serve stats need a serious looking at.

    The world No2 could only win 14 of 40 points he played on his second serve which is never going to cut it against someone like Djokovic. It would be harsh to make any judgments on how close or far Murray is right now from Djokovic as the Scot clearly had a lot of off-court issues to deal with this fortnight.

    He did well enough to make the final and will now take a much-deserved offseason break which he had always meant to take in February.

    The biggest takeaway from this Australian Open – and the first four weeks of the season in general – is that Djokovic is pulling further and further away from the rest.

    He has convincingly beaten Rafael Nadal (in the Doha final), Roger Federer (in the Melbourne semis) and now Murray, without breaking a sweat and has two titles in the bag and it’s only February 1.

    The fact that he can hit 100 unforced errors in a match and still win it, like he did against Gilles Simon in the fourth round, really makes me wonder who could actually beat him? Djokovic keeps repeating the word “holistic” any chance he gets, to describe the approach he is taking to his life and his sport.

    He does yoga, is obsessive with his diet, reads psychology books, and is super-meticulous with every aspect of his day-to-day life.

    It’s all taking him to unthinkable heights and it’s tough seeing anyone catching up this season.

    Sure you can have one match where someone like Stan Wawrinka overpowers him and takes his chances against him but the way things are looking, very few players are successfully able to take their chances when they face the world No1. Just ask Simon.

    Other takeaways from Melbourne? Milos Raonic is definitely one to watch this year, given he takes care of his body.

    Kei Nishikori played a brilliant match against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the fourth round before falling flat against Djokovic. The Japanese is an exciting presence at the top and with some health and consistency can reach another major final.

    Nadal had a bad draw and ended up with the wooden spoon. It will be key for him to rebound on the South American clay to win some matches and get some confidence.

    As for Murray, we’ll see him on the other side after he’s become a father.

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