Djokovic had been in imperious form throughout the tournament and after two tight opening sets, the top seed stepped up a gear to beat Murray 7-6, 6-7, 6-3, 6-0 to seal his fifth Australian Open crown.

For the British star, he was clearly haunted by past demons as he collapsed in the last two sets on his way to a third defeat to Djokovic in a Melbourne final.

Despite the loss, the 27-year-old may take the positives from what has been a superb tournament for him on his return to full fitness, but the day belonged once again to the formidable Djokovic.

"I'm honoured to be standing here as a champion for a fifth time and be among an elite group of players," he said.

"It's incredible.

"Every year I come back here I perform some of my best tennis."

The eagerly-anticipated contest provided high quality tennis from the outset as both players traded hammering blows from the baseline.

In the opening set, Djokovic signalled his intention right from the beginning as he raced into a 4-1 lead, but testament to his character and determination, Murray twice broke back to send it to a tie-break.

But unforced errors seemed to litter the Briton's performance in the breaker and Djokovic clinched it when Murray netted a return.

Andy Murray cut a dejected figure in the post-match press conference after he suffered his sixth Grand Slam final defeat ©Getty Images



But the British number one had quickly forgotten the disappointment of losing the first set as he broke early in the second for a 2-0 lead, which was hauled back by the Serb, despite the fact he was clearly struggling with a hand problem.

Murray saved three break points at 5-5 as the set went to another tie-break, though this time the sixth seed was the victor to level what was proving to be a classic contest.

It was at this point that Djokovic started to reach the heights that few in the sport can deal with as Murray began to collapse.

Djokovic capitalised on his opponents problems ruthlessly, winning 12 of the last 13 games as Murray succumbed to mental and physical fatigue.

The fourth set did not even last half-an-hour as Djokovic powered to victory to ensure he reigned supreme in Melbourne once again.

Martina Hingis claimed her first Grand Slam title since coming out of retirement for a second time in 2013 as she won the mixed doubles with Leander Paes ©Getty Images



Elsewhere, former world number one Martina Hingis won her first Grand Slam title since coming out of retirement in 2013 as she claimed the Australian Open mixed doubles title with Indian partner Leander Paes after the pair beat Kristina Mladenovic of France and Daniel Nestor of Canada 6-4, 6-3 in the final.

Hingis retired from the game in 2003 but returned in 2006 before she quit again in 2007, revealing that she had tested positive for cocaine at that year's Wimbledon.

Despite saying she had never taken drugs, she did not appeal her two-year ban and she came back again in 2013.

"Who would have thought it?" she said.

"It's more than I could ever dream of."

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