Novak Djokovic defeated Roger Federer in four sets in the US Open final for his 10th Grand Slam title. The top-ranked Serb beat Federer 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 to win three major championships in a year for the second time in his career. The second-seeded Federer is still stuck on 17 Grand Slam championships, with none since 2012's Wimbledon. After a rocky start, the Swiss great raised his level and kept constant pressure on his rival. But Djokovic was just a bit better at the biggest moments, saving 19 of 23 break points—including three in the final game—while converting six of 13 of his own opportunities. He topped Federer in the Wimbledon final in similar fashion—dropping the second set and taking the next two.
The start of the match was delayed more than three hours by rain, and when it began the crowd was firmly behind the 34-year-old Federer. But the roars for his opponent didn't rattle Djokovic much, and he also recovered quickly from a scary fall early in the first set that left him with bloody scrapes on his right forearm, hand, and knee. "We pushed each other to the limit," the No. 1-ranked Djokovic said after the match, "as we always do." Djokovic, who is 63-5 in 2015, including 27-1 at the majors, said he understood why the crowd backed Federer but hopes to someday get that sort of support. (More Novak Djokovic stories.)