The world No.1 and defending champion Novak Djokovic set up a third consecutive grand slam final against Rafael Nadal by outlasting Andy Murray in a nearly five-hour thriller at the Australian Open Tennis championship at Melbourne Park on Friday. The epic battle between the two 23-year-olds finally went in favor of the Serb with the scoreline reading 6-3, 3-6, 6-7 (7-4), 6-1, 7-5.
Djokovic made an astonishing comeback from two sets down when Murray claimed a tense third set in a tiebreak, and recovered from a difficult breathing condition to storm to the final.
Fourth-seeded Murray moved to a 5-2 lead in the fifth set, but could not survive the 6 foot 2 inch tall Djokovic's final onslaught.
He will meet second-seeded Spaniard Rafael Nadal in Sunday's final.
Nadal beat defending champion and third-seeded Roger Federer in the first semifinal on Thursday.
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Political News
June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.