Novak Djokovic came from a set down to beat Andy Murray and win his first French Open title. The 29-year-old Serbian triumphed in four sets, overpowering the Scot 3-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-4.
It was Djokovic's 12th major title and his victory in chilly Paris means he is the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to hold all four Grand Slams at once.
"It's a very special moment, the biggest of my career," said the world number one. "I felt today something that I never felt before at Roland Garros, I felt the love of the crowd." As if on cue, weak sunshine finally penetrated the Parisian sky, prompting the victor to announce: "The sun is finally coming out. Nice to see it after ten days of rain."
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Murray, the first British man to appear in a singles final in Paris since 1937, began the stronger of the two after the pair had first joined spectators on the Philippe Chatrier court in applauding an image of Muhammad Ali that was broadcast on the giant video screen.
Capitalising on Djokovic's 13 unforced errors, Murray took the first set 6-3 in 46 minutes. But the second seed let slip a break point early in the second, and Djokovic seized on his opponent's lapse to take hold of a match that he never relinquished.
In winning the French Open Djokovic became only the eighth man in history to have won all four of the sport's major singles titles, and he remains on course to win all four Grand Slams in a calendar year, something not achieved since Laver in 1969. Laver (who also accomplished the feat in 1962) and Don Budge (1938) are the only men who have accomplished the extraordinary feat.
For Murray the result was another defeat at the hands of Djokovic, his fifth in a major final and his 24th in all tournaments. Despite his aggression and accuracy in the first set, the Scot couldn't match the power game of his opponent when Djokovic began finding his rhythm in the second set. "When you are playing the best in the world there are going to be times when they raise their game and after I missed break point in the first game of the second set he loosened up a bit," reflected Murray. "I almost managed to find a way at the end of that fourth set to keep the match going but it was not enough.
Asked for his thoughts on the man who beat him, Murray replied: "What he's achieved in the last 12 months is phenomenal. Winning all the Grand Slams in one year is an amazing achievement. It's so rare in tennis, and for me personally, it sucks to lose the match, but I'm proud to have been part of today."
