Andy Murray Olympic Victory and the Highlights of the 2012 Tennis Season So Far

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The 2012 tennis season so far has been great for fans around the world.

No single player has managed to dominate the season, and the No.1 ranking has changed hands.

All three Grand Slams have been won by a different player this year, and a fourth player won Olympic gold to continue that trend.

Due to the dominance of Djokovic in the last year and Nadal and Federer before him, we have not seen such turbulence in the men's circuit for a long time.

Now, as the tennis world moves to Flushing Meadows, let's look back on what have been the highlights of the 2012 season so far.

Czech Republic Wins Hopman Cup

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Thanks to the exploits of Tomas Berdych and Petra Kvitova, the Czech Republic won the Hopman Cup after beating the French team 2-0 in the finals.

On the back of the tremendous form of their players, the Czech team won every match in which they played.

Having said that, as the highest ranked players that participated, they were expected to win it all.

Novak Djokovic at Australian Open

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The Djoker won the Australian Open by defeating Rafael Nadal in a record five hours and 53 minutes over five sets.

Defending his title, Djokovic was taken to the extreme by an untiring Rafa in every set to give the fans great value for their money.

Djokovic put on a master class in the semifinal against Andy Murray, while Rafa defeated his long-time rival Roger Federer in the other half.

Roger Federer Wins on Blue Clay

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The Madrid Open courts turned blue because of its organizers, and the players were not happy with the change.

Federer managed to tweak his game to win the title where other players like Djokovic and Nadal could not.

Though the organizers assured everyone that there was no difference in surface, many players complained that the bounce was uneven and attributed it to their early exits.

Rafael Nadal's Clay Court Season

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Except on the blue clay in Madrid, Rafael Nadal—as he does every year—had an impressive record on clay in 2012.

Nadal won his eighth successive Monte Carlo Open and seventh title in Barcelona in eight years.

Before returning to the French Open, Rafa won his sixth title in Rome as well.

Rafael Nadal at French Open

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Rafa carried his outstanding form on the clay courts into the French Open as well.

Dropping only 30 games en-route to the title, Nadal dominated the tournament in a way only he can.

Djokovic won one set in the final, but Nadal used the rain break to his advantage and regained the French Open for his seventh title to surpass Bjorn Borg's record in Paris.

Rafael Nadal Loses Early at Wimbledon

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Lukas Rosol was ranked No. 100 going into the Wimbledon tournament this year. However, he quickly became famous after defeating Rafael Nadal in the second round in five sets.

This was Rafa's earliest exit from a Grand Slam since 2005.

Nadal has not been seen on a tennis court since after withdrawing from tournaments including the U.S. Open.

Roger Federer at Wimbledon

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Roger Federer showed that he is still the king on the grass courts, especially at Wimbledon, by winning the title for the seventh time to equal the record of Pete Sampras.

By defeating Andy Murray in the final, Federer showed that he still had the drive and game to win matches against Djokovic first and Murray next.

In his first match against the Djoker on grass, Federer won to round off a great tournament and followed up with a similar performance against local favourite Andy Murray.