Djokovic eyes French Open glory after 'greatest' win

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic's incredible five-set win over second-ranked Rafael Nadal was the longest final in grand slam history, lasting five hours and 53 minutes. But where does the marathon clash rank among tennis' finest title matches?

Sweden's Bjorn Borg arrived at Wimbledon in 1980 aiming to secure a fifth consecutive title at the grass-court grand slam. In the final he faced the temperamental American John McEnroe, who raced into an early lead. But back came Borg, forcing McEnroe to save two match points in the fourth set. McEnroe clinched an epic tiebreak to level the match, but eventually slipped to a 1-6 7-5 6-3 6-7 (16-18) 8-6 defeat in the fifth set.

Four years later, McEnroe was the overwhelming favorite to claim a first French Open title when he took on Ivan Lendl in the 1984 Roland Garros final. McEnroe breezed into a two-set lead, but his Czech opponent, searching for a first major title, launched an astonishing comeback. Lendl's unexpected triumph was complete when McEnroe fired a volley wide, sealing a 3-6 2-6 6-4 7-5 7-5 win. At the age of 24, it was the first of eight grand slam titles for Lendl.

Germany's Steffi Graf began her ascent to the top of women's tennis with a breakthrough win at the 1987 French Open. Graf, aged 17, faced Czech world No. 1 Martina Navratilova in the final, winning 6-4 4-6 8-6 to clinch the first of a 22 grand slam singles titles -- which left her behind only Margaret Court in the alltime standings.

Martina Hingis was just three points from claiming a sixth grand slam title at the 1999 French Open when everything began to unravel. Hingis, playing Graf, had angered the Paris crowd by arguing with the umpire and received a one-point penalty for crossing the net to inspect her own ball mark. Graf battled back to seal a 4-6 7-5 6-2 win, leaving the distraught "Swiss miss" to be comforted by her mother.

Jana Novotna led 4-1 and 30-15 in the sixth game of the deciding set of her 1993 Wimbledon final against Graf. With glory seemingly inevitable, the Czech fell apart, losing five games in a row to surrender the match. During the trophy ceremony, a teary-eyed Novotna was comforted by the Duchess of Kent. Five years later, Novotna finally secured a Wimbledon triumph, becoming the oldest first-time grand slam winner in the Open era -- a record now held by Italy's 2010 French Open champion Francesca Schiavone.

Ahead of Wimbledon in 2001, a 29-year-old Goran Ivanisevic had slipped to 125th in the world rankings. Due to the fact he had been a three-time finalist at the tournament, the Croat was handed a wildcard for the event. What followed was one of sport's great fairytales, with Ivanisevic battling his way into the final where he won a rain-affected match with Australia's Pat Rafter. He is the only wildcard entrant to have won a Wimbledon title.

Roger Federer was the undisputed king of Wimbledon ahead of the 2008 final. The Swiss was looking for a sixth win in a row at the event, having beaten Rafael Nadal in the 2006 and 2007 finals. But the Spaniard was in no mood to lie down as he battled his way into a two-set lead. Federer showed his class by forcing himself level but, with the dark closing in around Centre Court, Nadal secured a first Wimbledon crown. Nadal's 6-4 6-4 6-7 (5-7) 6-7 (8-10) 9-7 victory took four hours and 48 minutes, making it is the longest men's singles final at the All England Club.

For the majority of the last decade, Nadal and Federer have dominated men's tennis -- winning 26 grand slam titles between them. Six months on from their Wimbledon clash, they met again in the 2009 Australia Open final. Federer was looking for a fourth Melbourne title, but instead it was Nadal who claimed his first win at the tournament in another five-set classic. Federer was reduced to tears at the end of the energy-sapping match.

Former world No. 1 Kim Clijsters returned to tennis in 2009, having retired two years earlier to concentrate on raising her daughter. The Belgian received a wildcard for the U.S. Open and fought her way into the final, where she beat Denmark's Caroline Wozniacki 7-5 6-3 to win her second grand slam title. She became the first wildcard champion in U.S. Open history and celebrated on court with her daughter.

HIDE CAPTION

The greatest ever?

The Iceman cometh

Late-bloomer Lendl

Graf gets started

Heartbreak for Hingis

Not quite for Novotna

Glory for Goran

Rafa edges Roger at last

Rafa v Roger continued

Comeback queen Clijsters

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(CNN) -- World No. 1 Novak Djokovic has set his sights on a first French Open title after beating second-ranked Rafael Nadal in a epic five-set Australian Open final on Sunday.

The Melbourne final was the longest ever played in one of tennis' four grand slams, as Djokovic claimed his fifth major crown and third in Melbourne with a 5-7 6-4 6-2 6-7 7-5 win in five hours and 53 minutes.

When asked if this was his greatest win, the Serbian -- who has beaten Nadal in the last three grand slam finals -- told reporters: "Yes. Right now, yes.

"This one I think comes out on the top because we played almost six hours ... I think it's probably the longest finals in the history of all grand slams, and just to hear that fact is making me cry.

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"I'm very proud just to be part of this history, part of the elite of the players that have won this tournament several times.

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"I was very flattered to be playing in front of Rod Laver, in front of the all-time greats, and in front of 15,000 people that stayed until 1:30 a.m."

Australian legend Laver is the last man to hold all four grand slam titles at one time, having achieved that feat for a second time in 1969.

Djokovic can match that if he wins the French Open for the first time in June, though his quadruple slam would be in a non-calendar year.

The 24-year-old hopes to improve his performance at Roland Garros, where last year he was beaten in the semifinals by 16-time major winner Roger Federer to end a 43-match winning run.

"I'm prioritizing grand slams this year, as every year, and the Olympic Games," the 24-year-old said. "I think that's one of my highest goals.

"So I want to do well and I want to get the first final at least in Paris. I have never been in finals there, and I have a feeling that I'm ready this year to achieve that."

Djokovic has now won seven successive finals against Nadal, including Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, but he gave due credit to the 2009 Australian Open champion after their marathon match.

"Unfortunately there had to only be one winner because we both gave it all. We both put 100% of our abilities on the court and played to the last moment," he said.

"There couldn't be two winners, but he definitely deserved to be a winner as well. I would be saying same thing if I was sitting here as a loser."

After an intensive fortnight of competition, Djokovic said he planned to ban his friends from talking to him about tennis.

"Please, yes," he joked when asked he was going to take a break from the game. "I'm going to definitely try to get that message to them."

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