Djokovic beats Nadal for first Open title

Novak Djokovic Monday night proceeded with his 2011 tennis theme, storming the ramparts and wrecking more furniture in the castle of recent ruler Rafael Nadal with a howling, four-set victory for his first U.S. Open title.

It was Djokovic's third major tournament title this year, duplicating Nadal's 2010 season, and came right on the heels of his displacing Nadal as Wimbledon champion and top-ranked player earlier this summer. Though trailing Nadal in career head-to-head meetings, 16-13, it was Djokovic's sixth straight win over the Spaniard and lifted Djokovic's 2011 record to a staggering 64-2.

And it put Djokovic, the 24-year-old Serb, solidly in the mix with his generation's best -- Nadal and Roger Federer -- with a fourth career Grand Slam trophy, compared to the 25-year-old Nadal's 10. Federer, now 30 and without a major title in the last seven Slam events, has a record 16.

"Incredible feeling,'' Djokovic said. "I've had an amazing year and it keeps going. Every time I play Rafa, it's a big challenge. I wish we will have many more tough matches in the upcoming years.''

Runner-up to Nadal in last year's Open in an equally demanding four-setter, Djokovic insisted he has not "changed my game in any major way'' since then.

"It's just that I'm going for it; I'm more aggressive. I just have a different approach, especially when I'm playing great champions like Rafa and Roger. In the past, I was just waiting for their mistakes and not having the attitude of believing I could win.''

Certainly, this win did not come without a spirited defense from Nadal that chewed up and ground down both men in a four-hour, 10-minute wrangle. More dog eat dog than cat and mouse, the 6-2, 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-1 decision was achieved only through long, punishing rallies, during which each man's power was matched only by his scurrying court coverage.

Their tireless, heavy lifting left Arthur Ashe Stadium littered with broken service games -- 11 for Djokovic, six for Nadal -- and the 24,712 fans in a dizzying roar. Djokovic was matching Nadal's rubbery gets with running, sliding, reaching shots, turning most of Nadal's service games into long ordeals. But Nadal's ability to continue steeling himself for every point made Djokovic's quick two-set lead somehow feel tenuous.

When Djokovic, serving for the match at 6-5 in the third set, let the proceedings slip to a tiebreak, which he promptly lost, then called a medical timeout for a cranky back, the possibility of a survival of the fittest five-setter loomed large.

Then, just as Nadal had resurrected himself, time after time, Djokovic popped back up in the fourth set -- and ultimately became only the sixth player to win the Open after surviving a match point in the tournament, having saved two against Federer in the semifinals.

Two reflex volleys won the fourth set's first game for Djokovic, a ripping forehand down the line gave him the break in the second game, a drop shot/overhead sequence (after Nadal made one of those between-the-legs saves) led to a 3-0 lead.

And, after a night of each man throwing the other over a figurative cliff, only to see his opponent climb right back into the fray, Djokovic seized another break on two Nadal errors. And served out the match.