Novak Djokovic wins US Open 2015 title after beating rival Roger Federer at Flushing Meadows as world No 1 toasts 10th grand slam

• World No 1 Djokovic took the first set 6-4 before Federer levelled in the second
• But Serbian recovered to claim the third set 6-4 before finishing the decisive set 6-4
• The victory is Djokovic's second US Open success (his last in 2011) and his 10th grand slam career title
• Djokovic has won Australian Open, Wimbledon and now US Open in 2015 - only missing out on French Open
• World No 2 Federer, 34, missed out on the chance to add to his haul of five US Open crowns 
• A host of celebrities watched the final at Flushing Meadows
• David Beckham, Leonardo DiCaprio, Hugh Jackman and Adrien Brody among the A-listers in New York
• Final was delayed by three hours down to downpour
• New roof over Arthur Ashe court is due to be completed by 2016 in time for next year's tournament 

By Mike Dickson for MailOnline

Published: 21:40 EST, 13 September 2015 | Updated: 16:38 EST, 14 September 2015

Roger Federer and a feverish Flushing Meadows crowd threw everything they had at Novak Djokovic, and still they could not break him.

The 28 year-old Serb is the immoveable object at the top of men’s tennis and amid the raucous atmosphere of the Arthur Ashe Stadium he claimed a tenth Grand Slam title to deny the great Swiss an eighteenth.

Facing a partisan assembly that was like Switzerland on steroids, ignoring shouts prior to his serve, the world No 1 beat back Federer’s attacking play to win 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 in three hours and twenty minutes.

So after the tournament that was meant to be all about Serena Williams winning four Majors in a year Djokovic ends it tying her with three of them. Were it not for Stan Wawrinka’s Tour de Force against him in Paris he would have been looking at the Grand Slam himself.

Scroll down for video 

A delighted Novak Djokovic holds the US Open trophy up in the air as beaten rival Roger Federer looks on in disappointment

Djokovic kisses the US Open trophy after his 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 victory over Roger Federer in the final at Flushing Meadows

Federer once again had to settle for second best as Djokovic claimed his 10th career Grand Slam title in New York

The new US Open champion shares a kiss with his wife Jelena immediately after his victory over Federer in the final

Djokovic hugs his coach Boris Becker after his four-set victory over Federer in Sunday's US Open final in New York

Djokovic jumps into the crowd in celebration of his latest grand slam victory courtesy of his won over Federer on Sunday

Djokovic's coach Becker shared an image on Instagram of celebrations inside new champion Djokovic's locker room

Djokovic kisses the trophy amid a storm of red, white and blue confetti on Arthur Ashe following his triumph over Federer

World No 1 Novak Djokovic kisses the air in delight after securing a landmark 10th career grand slam title

Novak Djokovic clinched his third grand slam of the year - his 10th in total - and second at the US Open after beating Roger Federer

World No 2 Federer, 34, missed the chance to add to his collection of five US Open titles after falling short to rival Djokovic again

In terms of mental fortitude this might have been his best yet. Faced with constant catcalling and a late fightback from the world No 2 he still held firm.

Federer, who played so beautifully coming into this, was left to consider the fact that you cannot win at this rarefied level when spurning nineteen out of twenty three break points that he did.

Partly due to the iron will and consistency of Djokovic, and perhaps due to the nerve fraying a bit with age, the 34 year-old Swiss could not quite muster the composure when he most needed it. 

Djokovic returns a shot to fellow finalist Federer as he bids to follow up this year's victory at the Australian Open and Wimbledon

Djokovic raises his fist to celebrate a point as he went in search of his second US Open winner's medal and 10th Grand Slam title

Federer leaps in the air as he makes an attempt to return the ball to his sporting rival in front of the watching New York crowd

Tennis legends Federer and Djokovic went to head to head for the right of being labelled the US Open champion of 2015

Yet he never gave up, and an agonising final game saw him reduce the Serb to 15-40 on serve before the champion forced himself across the line.

Federer remains without a Grand Slam title since Wimbledon 2012 while Djokovic moves into double figures. When the final reckoning at the end of their careers comes we cannot know who will be ahead.

What was the 42nd match between these two – the only rivalry between the fabled Big Four that could really be said to still be on the boil right now – finally got going more than three hours after the scheduled start.

Rain had fallen, on cue, just fifteen minutes before the planned beginning, and it was clear that some liquid refreshment had put the star-studded crowd in high spirits.

Robert Redford, David Beckham, Paul Simon, Sir Sean Connery and Hugh Jackman were among those eager to see whether the great Swiss could further add to his legacy.

The opening could not be said to be of hugely high quality from a world number one and two, both edgy and feeling each other out, and it was by virtue of Federer’s unforced errors that the Serb went ahead. 

Djokovic looks in discomfort after rolling his ankle on the hard court following what looked like a painful slip by the Serbian tennis star

Djokovic’s movement shrinks the court, making his opponent cut his margin for error, and there were sixteen unforced errors from his side in the opening set. Also, the Serb’s high class return of serve also sees the Swiss’s first delivery percentage go down, and that was again the case.

With the crowd highly partial in the 34 year-old’s favour, almost like he was Jimmy Connors reincarnated, early breaks were exchanged. Then Djokovic got the break with a backhand pass down the line for 4-3. Neither man looked that solid on serve but the world No 1 just about held firm to close it out.

When he did so that was the first set that Federer had dropped in his twelve matches since Wimbledon.

We did not see his much vaunted SABR – Sneak Attack By Roger – until the first point of the Djokovic’s next service game, and the chip-charge return worked. But the Swiss could not convert any of his three break points, lacking that extra bit of sangfroid he might have had against lesser opponents on lesser occasions. 

World No 1 Djokovic sits on the floor during the singles encounter after losing his footing on the hard court due to a lack of grip

The 28-year-old required medical attention after losing his footing as he grazed his arm due to the hard texture of the court surface

US Open finalist Djokovic looks at his arm after sustaining the injury while wiping the blood off with a white towel 

Chair Umpire Eva Asderaki-Moore talks to the finalists before the highly-anticipated clash at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center

Djokovic and Federer line up for a photo before the match gets underway three hours later than initally planned due to a rain delay

The tennis match was delayed by three hours as rain water covered the courts in New York to delay proceedings in the men's final

Jelena Djokovic, Novak's wife, is all smiles during the contest between the world's top two men's singles players 

Federer's wife Mirka watched the match alongside the world No 2's coach Stefan Edberg in order to provide support to her husband

Former Manchester United star David Beckham watched the US Open tennis final alongside American Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour

Beckham and Wintour were joined in the stands by actors Bradley Cooper and Sean Connery during the New York clash

Actor Hugh Jackman greets Wintour and Beckham as he takes to his seat before Sunday's US Open final at Flushing Meadows

X-Men actor Jackman helps his wife Deborra-Lee Furness by clipping a headpiece onto her ear in order for her to hear audio commentary

Leonardo DiCaprio looks extremely relaxed as he talks to US model Kelly Rohrbach (right) and US actor Adrien Brody (centre)

Actress Julianna Margulies and former American Idol judge Randy Jackson keep a close eye on proceedings from the stands

He began to mount more cavalry charges into the net but in the fourth game Djokovic responded with two magnificent backhand lobs that served as the perfect deterrent.

As the volume ramped up and the Swiss serve began to fire properly they played a pivotal tenth game which had eight deuces and two set points for the increasingly aggressive Federer. The second of them involved a mid court forehand with Djokovic at his mercy, but he sent it six inches long to spurn a golden opportunity.

The Swiss finally clinched it when he won his ninth break point of the set at 6-5, uncorking a vicious cross court backhand that his opponent could not fetch. Even Stefan Edberg, his famously sanguine coach, got out of his seat to applaud.

It was very much in Djokovic’s interests to turn this into a physical war, and Federer’s legs seemed to feel it as he held on in the first six games in the third set, before an unexpected lapse of concentration from the other end helped present the Swiss with two break points.

On one of these he dumped a very makeable backhand in the net, and in the next game he put the same shot into the tramlines to allow Djokovic, who had been defending frantically around the back of the court, to serve for the set.

Federer had two more break points as he tried to do so, which he managed with the help of a correct overrule from Greek umpire Eva Asderaki, the first woman to umpire a US men’s final, who had an excellent match.

Pure delight for Djokovic after he sealed the decisive fourth set to beat Federer

That seemed to floor him and he went behind early in the fourth before forcing another break point at 2-3 which he missed with an overpressed forehand, a shot that lacked reliability when most needed.

Federer continues to grace the courts but his unforced error count was up to 54 by the end and he was broken a second time with a stunning forehand return pass. Then came the late dart from 2-5 which was a huge credit to him.

As for Djokovic, the man whose game has no holes in it, he looks equally as dominant at the top of the men’s game as Williams has been among the women. 

The pair showed great mutual respect for one another after a thrilling final in New York

Djokovic, who wins £2.15 million, said: 'It was a very difficult match, I have a tremendous respect for Roger, playing the best player in history adds to the pressure.

'I knew he was going to be very aggressive and not drop his level too much. I was serving at 5-2 in the fourth and Roger showed why he is a champion. I was fortunate to come up with some big serves in that last game.'

Federer said: 'I had a wonderful last two weeks, I’m pleased with where my game is at. I enjoyed it and I thought it was a great match.'

Comments (203)

Share what you think

• Newest
• Oldest
• Best rated
• Worst rated

 View all

The comments below have not been moderated.

 View all

The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline.

Add your comment

Enter your comment

By posting your comment you agree to our house rules.

Submit Comment Clear

Who is this week's top commenter? Find out now