Djokovic guts out victory at Indian Wells

Published January 08, 2015

Indian Wells, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Novak Djokovic needed three sets, and then some, to erase an early deficit and take down Roger Federer to win Sunday's final at the BNP Paribas Open.

The Serbian right-hander and two seed needed 2 hours and 12 minutes, plus a third-set tiebreaker, to take home $1 million in the blockbuster final in the first ATP Masters 1000 event of the year with a 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) triumph.

Seventh-seeded Federer -- who bested Djokovic in the Dubai semifinals late last month -- went up 4-1 early on and claimed a 6-3 victory in the first set, then saw his opponent roar back to take the second set by an identical score.

In the third, Djokovic was up 5-3, then overcame four Federer aces in the third set and rallies to tie at 5-5 and 6-6, before blowing the doors off in the extra session with a 7-3 result to clinch the title.

Despite the setback, Federer still owns a 17-16 lead in the all-time series.

Nonetheless, Djokovic has won here three times in the last six years (2008, 2011 and 2014) and also had the pleasure of denying the 32-year-old Swiss a record fifth title at this tournament.

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