Novak Djokovic vs. Andy Murray title-round preview – Sony Ericsson Open 2012
World number one, Novak Djokovic, will square off against the fourth seed, Andy Murray, in the final showdown at the Sony Ericsson Open 2012, an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event taking place in Miami, Florida.
The defending champion and the top seed, Djokovic is bidding for his second year-to-date title at Key Biscayne. He has had won his last nine matches at these Floridian hard courts and clinched on 12 of his last 13 final round appearances.
The Serb outclassed the 21st seed, Juan Monaco, with a bagel to occupy this spot. Djokovic saved seven out of eight breakpoints he faced and capitalised on four out of 11 break chances to jolt down an assuring 6-0, 7-6(5) score line. However,
he manifested a poor first serve share of 49 per cent and smashed only two aces.
The 24-year-old Brit on the other end won six out of his last seven final showdowns. He reached this final spot with a walkover win after the world number two, Rafael Nadal, was forced to withdraw due to a left knee injury. However, the Scot bounced back
to overpower the ninth seed, Janko Tipsarevic, with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 success to reach the semis. Murray warded off half of the 10 breakpoints he came across but cashed in six out of eight break opportunities to earn the limelight.
Both stars are clashing each other for the 13th time with Djokovic leading the FedEx ATP Head 2 Head series by 7-5 against the Scot. The Serb outlasted Murray in a five set thriller at the semi-finals of the Australian Open earlier this circuit.
However, the British number one avenged his loss with a straight set victory at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.
"He likes the conditions. He likes to play in the heat, as well, and has a good serve," the delighted Serb was quoted in a post-match press conference. "So we kind of play similar, as well. We grew up together. We know each other really well. We have been
rivals since and good friends off the court. It's going to be a good match. I don't think it's going to affect him that much that he hasn't played today, but we'll see what happens."
In their last match together, Murray committed more double faults but smashed five aces and spectacularly clicked 40 out of 56 points on his first serve share to bag the match. The Scot amazingly brushed off two out of three breakpoints he encountered and
converted four out of five break chances to his advantage.
Overall, the high-spirited British is expected to register a 7-5, 2-6, 7-6(4) score line over Djokovic. However, Murray needs to stay focus at all time and improve his defensive skills in order to pull out the victory. He should also improve his first serve
share and quickly cash in the break chances he seeks in order to outfox the top seed.
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