Djokovic beat Andy Murray to win sixth Australian Open final

Novak Djokovic vanquished Andy Murray for the fourth time in an Australian Open final on Sunday to win a record-equalling sixth title and serve notice to his rivals that he could surpass even his stellar 2015 this year.

Djokovic successfully defended his crown in his fifth consecutive Grand Slam final apter pipping Murray to the title for a fourth time and fifth overall with a commanding 6-1 7-5 7-6 (7-3) victory on Rod Laver Arena.

Victory helped the 28-year-old claim his 11th Grand Slam title and join Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg on the all-time list. He has won four of the last five slams, 38 of his last 39 matches, and at this rate Roger Federer's record 17 is within range of the 28-year-old.

He also equalled the tally of Australia's Roy Emerson, who won the tournament six times between 1961 and 1967, an achievement that has gone unmatched in the 49 years since - until Sunday.

The dominant Serb also extended his Grand Slam winning streak to 21 matches, and has not lost a match at the majors since he was defeated by Stan Wawrinka in last year's French Open final at Roland Garros.

Although world number two Murray battled hard after losing the opening five games in the blink of an eye, the dominant manner of Sunday's 6-1 7-5 7-6(3) victory vindicated Djokovic's opinion that he was at the zenith of his powers.

Djokovic reprised the two sets of flawless tennis he played in his semi-final against Roger Federer to race to a 5-0 lead in just 19 minutes.

Murray contributed to his downfall, a double-fault handed his first service game to his opponent, but the depth and accuracy of Djokovic's groundstrokes had the Scot chasing shadows on the Rod Laver Arena.

To his credit Murray, who beat Djokovic to win the U.S. Open and Wimbledon titles and probably would have claimed several more but for the Serb, rose to the challenge.

He had chances too. He was 5-5 40-0 ahead in the second set with Djokovic under pressure before he came off second best in a spellbinding 36-stroke rally as Djokovic roared back to break before clinching a two-set lead despite two double faults.

Murray even fought back from 2-0 down in the third, but his resistance snapped in the tiebreak and Djokovic fired down his seventh ace to secure victory.