World No. 1 Novak Djokovic (left) and Rafael Nadal face off in the season's first Grand Slam final. (Getty Images)

Novak Djokovic outlasted Rafael Nadal 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 on Sunday to win the Australian Open in the longest Grand Slam final of the Open Era.

Djokovic won his third straight major and extended his winning streak over Nadal to seven.  Nadal became the first player in the Open Era to lose three consecutive Grand Slam finals.

Game-by-game analysis from the five-hour, 53-minute match is below.

Fifth Set

9:40 a.m. ET | Djokovic wins set 7-5, wins match 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5

After 5 hours and 53 minutes we find out what we knew all along: Novak Djokovic is simply unbeatable.

Nadal sends a backhand into the net on the first point and Djokovic gets to 30-love with an ace. At 30-15, Nadal sends back defensive slice after defensive slice and finally throws up a defensive lob that Djokovic sends into the bottom of the net. On the next point, Nadal spins his legs again, covering the court like a road runner, earning a backhand error from Djokovic and a break point.

Break point down, Djokovic does what he always does: he closes his eyes and takes a rip, crushing a backhand cross court winner. Nadal tries to do the same thing at deuce except his backhand clips the tape and goes wide, giving Djokovic his first match point. The Serb pleads to the heavens, settles himself, and then serves up the tee, getting a short reply, and finishes with a mid-court forehand.

That was an incredible almost six hours of tennis. This was a battle of wills, but in the end, when the margin for error was so small, Djokovic steeled himself to victory. He’s had some incredible wins during his otherworldly rise, but this is undoubtedly his biggest and most impressive of all. Huge heart from the Serb to beat back a charging Nadal.

9:31 a.m. ET | Djokovic leads 6-5

Momentum is a funny thing. Nadal looked down and out in the fourth set and squeaked it out in the end. Now Djokovic looked down and dusted through most of this fifth set but he’s broken and will serve for the match.

Djokovic gets a great return deep that Nadal hits out and he knows he’s got a chance on Nadal’s serve. The Serb buckles down and earns a break point after a lengthy rally and Djokovic is now hitting the ball well again. There’s more stick to his shots and they’re pushing Nadal back. Nadal saves one break point with a forehand winner, but he gives another one back with a forehand winner. Down break point, Nadal sends a backhand slice into the tape, and voila, Djokovic breaks.

9:22 a.m. ET | Set tied 5-5

Djokovic with a quick hold. He needed that.

It’s 5-5 in the fifth and this one is too tough to call right now. It feels like Djokovic has pulled the momentum back to even.

9:15 a.m. ET | Nadal leads 5-4

Djokovic gets within one point of being able to serve for this match but Nadal steps up, saving a break point and holding. The guts on display right now is absolutely insane.

A 35-shot rally ends when Djokovic finally blinks and sends a forehand long. He falls to the ground in exhaustion and the crowd comes to its feet to give the guys a standing ovation. This is incredible determination after five hours (and counting) of play. But Nadal sends a quick message to the struggling Serb. Before Djokovic is even back on his feet, Nadal is standing on the line ready to serve and get the next point started. At 30-30 Nadal hits an ace down the tee and Djokovic is now pleading with his racket for some help. He’s starting to look like a guy who cannot believe he’s in this situation, but behind that wry smile is the determination of a guy who’s not ready to let Nadal off the hook.

Djokovic saves game point with an inside-out forehand return winner, and an errant forehand gives him break point. At five hours and 30 minutes Nadal does what he did over an hour ago, he saves break point with a service winner and backs it up with another big serve that sets up a drop shot winner. Djokovic sends a backhand return long and with a “VAMOS!”, Nadal squeezes out the hold.

At 4-5, Djokovic is now serving to stay in the match from here on out.

9:05 a.m. ET | Set tied 4-4

I don’t know how he’s still standing, but Djokovic holds and kisses the cross around his neck.

At love-15, a grueling 25-shot rally ends at the net as Djokovic puts away the volley and the Serb smiles through heavy breathing. Everything has to be burning for him right now, his lungs and his legs. But credit to him, he’s fighting through it, getting a backhand error on a return from Nadal. And as Nadal has now dropped back into his defensive shell, Djokovic is controlling the rallies and going for winners. Not a good tactic from Nadal. The defensive game only works if he’s going to work Djokovic’s legs, not if he’s just going let the Serb take swings from the middle of the court.

8:59 a.m. ET | Nadal leads 4-3

Djokovic breaks back thanks to a bit of charitable hitting from Nadal and we’re back on serve.

Serving at 30-15, Nadal has plenty of time on a backhand at the net and he shockingly sends it wide. That ball changed everything in this game, as Djokovic earns a break point with some heavy hitting to Nadal’s forehand and then a perfect return on a second serve that skids off the baseline prompts a forehand error from Nadal. The Djoker is still kicking, but he’s still serving from behind at 3-4.

8:55 a.m. ET | Nadal leads 4-2

Nadal keeps working Djokovic’s legs while churning his own and it works. He gets the break and is in control of this match.

Djokovic has never won back-to-back five-set matches and he’s never had to play two consecutive grueling matches like this  and his 4 hour, 50 minute semifinal against Murray. His shots have lost their pop and Nadal is running everything down and getting a good strike on the ball. At 30-30, Nadal retreats to the back of the court and dares Djokovic to try and hit through him. On the 14th shot of the rally, Djokovic sails an inside-out forehand wide to give Nadal break point. He converts when Djokovic sends a forehand long. Nadal is two games away from getting the monkey off his back.

8:48 a.m. ET | Nadal leads 3-2

Nadal holds at love and he hasn’t dropped a point on his serve so far in this set. Djokovic is actually staggering after hitting his shots. We’ve seen this from Djokovic before and Nadal will pay no mind to the Serb’s body language.

We might need to get some espresso shots down on court. The lines judge just missed a call that was an inch out. Wake up, everyone!

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Maria Sharapova (left) and Victoria Azarenka face off for the seventh carrer time in the Australian Open final. (Getty Images)

MELBOURNE, Australia — And just like that, the WTA has a new No. 1. Victoria Azarenka steamrolled Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-0 in the Australian Open final to win her first career Grand Slam title.

“Today, Victoria played better on so many levels,” Sharapova said at the awards ceremony after the match. Indeed, after falling behind 0-2, Azarenka rolled to win 12 of the next 13 games on the way to the title. In a stark contrast to the top-heavy ATP, Azarenka’s win means all four Grand Slam titles are now held by first-time major winners.

Check out our game-by-game analysis below.

Second Set

5:07 a.m. ET | Azarenka wins set 6-0, wins match 6-3, 6-0.

Azarenka gets a little nervy serving out and Sharapova steps it up a bit, but it was too little too late. On her first match point, Sharapova hits an unforced error and Azarenka drops to her knees. She keeps looking to her box as if saying “What just happened?”

A rather cold handshake at the net between the two ladies, no hugs, no kisses, and it almost looked like they were going to arm wrestle. Sharapova has to be devastated.

Welcome to the Grand Slam club and the No. 1 ranking, Victora Azarenka. Amazing composure throughout the fortnight and she put her foot on Sharapova’s throat tonight and never let go. She was the better player and is a well-deserving champion.

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Novak Djokovic celebrates after outlasting Andy Murray in the semifinals. (Mark Dadswell/Getty Images)

MELBOURNE, Australia — It took just under five hours, but Novak Djokovic finally beat Andy Murray 6-3, 3-6, 6-7 (4), 6-1, 7-5 on Friday to reach the Australian Open final. Djokovic will take on Rafael Nadal, who knocked off Roger Federer in four sets in the first semifinal match on Thursday.

It was a topsy-turvy spectacle that saw both men seize momentum, with long, physical rallies taking their toll over the course of the match. Murray was able to climb back from 5-2 down in the fifth set, breaking Djokovic while he was serving for the match. But the Serb rebounded, as he has done consistently for more than a year now, saving a crucial break point with a forehand down-the-line winner that was reminiscent, in guts if nothing else, of his incredible forehand return against Roger Federer to save match point at last year’s U.S. Open. After surviving Murray’s late surge, Djokovic broke the Scot for the match to move a step closer to defending his title.

“As a tennis player, you practice hard every single day knowing that you will get an opportunity to be part of such a great match and on such a high level,” Djokovic said.

“I’m proud of the way I fought,” said Murray, who was dominated by Djokovic in last year’s final here.

Murray described it as an “up-and-down match” in which Djokovic played “just a little bit better.”

Said Murray: “Sometimes you come off the court and you’ve played really badly, you haven’t quite been there mentally, and then you’re really disappointed with yourself because you’ve let yourself down. I don’t feel like I’ve let myself down today. “

Here’s game-by-game analysis of a wild Australian Open semifinal match.

Fifth Set

8:39 a.m. ET | Djokovic wins set 7-5, wins match 6-3, 3-6, 6-7 (4), 6-1, 7-5

At 15-15, Murray sends a backhand slice long and chides himself to “hit it.” A little too late for that, as an error off Murray’s racket gives Djokovic two match points at 15-40.

He runs Murray back and forth and finally closes out the match with a volley winner, falls to his back in celebration. Just like his final opponent last night, Djokovic celebrates as if he’s won the tournament, applauding Murray as he quickly exits the court.

Once again, Novak Djokovic comes back from the brink and the difference was his fitness and his confidence. He never lost belief even when getting broken while serving for the match, and when he was up against the wall, he had the confidence to go for that forehand winner to save break point. Ridiculous stuff from the world No. 1, who sends his good friend packing after four hours and fifty minutes of brutal tennis.

Ice baths on the house, gentlemen. What a show.

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Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal meet for the 27th time in the Australian Open semifinals. (Getty Images)

MELBOURNE, Australia — The domination continues.

Rafael Nadal came back from a set down to notch his fifth straight win over Roger Federer at a Slam, beating his rival 6-7 (5), 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-4 in the semifinals of the Australian Open.

In a scratchy match that rarely saw the two men simultaneously play at their best, Nadal proved again that on the biggest of stages he is consistently able to drag Federer down from the rarefied air where he typically operates. It’s tennis’ equivalent to a backyard brawl. With the pressure on, Federer swung and missed, hitting 63 unforced errors, 36 on his forehand side, and, excluding from the first set, Federer was unable to summon his magic on the big points.

Nadal, who will be trying for his second Australian Open title and 11th major title overall, is now through to his fourth straight Slam final and will face the winner of Friday’s semifinal match between Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray.

Our game-by-game analysis from Melbourne is below.

Fourth Set

7:27 a.m. ET | Nadal wins set 6-4, wins match 6-7 (5), 6-2, 7-6 (5), 6-4

Nadal gets nervy serving it out and Federer earns two break points to even the match. On the first break point, Nadal hits a forehand that bounces over off the top of the net cord, Federer hits a forehand, Nadal sends a squash-shot lob that lands on the baseline, and Federer sends the ball wide. That’s bad luck for Federer and after Rafa dodges that bullet, he converts his second match point of the game when Federer sends a forehand long.

Game, set, match, Rafael Nadal. He reaches his fourth straight Slam final and becomes only the fifth man to reach all four Grand Slam finals at least twice. He drops to his knees after the handshake as though he had just won the tournament. A crushing defeat for Roger, who started the match so well but got bullied once Rafa got settled into the match.

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Rafael Nadal takes on Roger Federer for their 26th career meeting on Tuesday at the ATP World Tour Finals in London. Nadal leads the head-to-head 17-8 and downed Federer the last time the two greats met in the 2011 French Open final. Join Courtney Nguyen for a live chat during the match, set to start at 3:00 p.m. ET.

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The U.S. Open semifinals are here, and there could be few better matchups than the Big 4 battling it out on Arthur Ashe Stadium for a shot at glory in Flushing. We’ll be live blogging the first semifinal match between world No. 1 Novak Djokovic and one of history’s greatest players Roger Federer. The match is sure to excite, so check back in at noon to join in on the discussion with Courtney Nguyen and the SI.com tennis team.

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Andy Roddick and Rafael Nadal are set to battle it out for a spot in the U.S. Open semifinals. The match is scheduled second on Arthur Ashe Stadium, so come back here to chat with Courtney Nguyen and the SI.com tennis team during the action.

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