Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray & Roger Federer: What We've Learned from Dubai

World No. 4 and British No. 1 Andy Murray has come a step closer to putting away the misery of his Australian Open semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic, after he avenged that defeat with a clinical two set demolition of the World No. 1.

Playing in his first tournament since the Australian Open earlier this year in January, Murray never seemed to lose control of the match as he won 6-2, 7-5.

Elsewhere, Roger Federer continued his run of, what has to now be considered, mandatory forgone-conclusion, wins over world No. 10 Juan Martin Del Potro. The Swiss No. 2 seed won 7-6, 7-6.

So what have we learned from the past couple of days in Dubai?

Well for one, anyone expecting a repeat of Novak Djokovic's swashbuckling 2011 is in a bad couple of months. Not only did Rafael Nadal's final comeback go a long way to deconstructing Djokovic's aura of invincibility, Andy Murray's exploits against him in that very same tournament was cause for concern. Yes, Djokovic will win his fair share of close matches, but he won't win all of them, and, dare I say, his "quota" is already running short.

Secondly, Andy Murray hasn't really proved anything. OK, he's beaten Djokovic in Dubai: Boohoo! Where was he at the Australian Open 2012 and at the US Open last year? Until the Scot wins a major title, he will habitually be known for being great at the lesser events and absent in the career-defining ones.

Thirdly, at this point, no-one can legitimately continue to cite injury as an excuse for Juan Martin Del Potro's poor form against the top three. Yes, he won Marseille recently, but who was there?

Finally, to some out there, Roger Federer is the favorite to claim his second title of the year when he meets Andy Murray in the Dubai final. However, let's not forget that if he were to win, that'd be neither Nadal nor Djokovic that he's had to play for those wins. In other words, let's not get ahead of ourselves.