Mason, Ohio – For the first time since last November, Novak up.
He has Andy Murray and a shoulder injury to thank for that.
Murray was on his way to victory in the second set of their championship match Sunday at the $2.43 million Western & Southern Open when the top-ranked Serbian retired. Murray was up 6-4, 3-0 at the time.
Murray picked up his second title of the year, while Djokovic was unable to win his 10th in a row and sustain his incredible run of success.
The Serbian entered Sunday with a 57-1 record overall, and a 33-0 mark in hardcourts. He had won nine titles -- including a win over Murray in the final at the Australian Open, a victory over Rafael Nadal for the Wimbledon crown and six Masters championships -- and risen to No. 1 in the world.
His only loss had come against Roger Federer in the semifinals of the French Open.
But Sunday, Djokovic had little working for him. He won only 46 percent of his service points and was broken four times by Murray, who improved to 4-6 in his career against Djokovic. The fourth-seeded Scotsman also picked up his second career Cincinnati title, having also won in 2008.
Djokovic hadn't lost a final since Federer beat him for the Basel title last November.
It's not certain how Djokovic's shoulder injury will affect him heading into the U.S. Open. First-round play begins August 29, giving the Serbian a little more than a week to recuperate.
But after Sunday, Murray, a runner-up to Federer at the 2008 U.S. Open, will go into it with a head of steam.
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