Australian Open 2016 Men's Final: TV Schedule, Start Time and Live Stream
Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray will meet in Sunday's 2016 Australian Open men's final, as the former goes looking for a sixth title at the Rod Laver Arena.
ESPN will provide full TV coverage and live streams of the match, as will Eurosport.
Murray beat Djokovic at the US Open in 2012 to win his first career Grand Slam title, but the Serb has dominated the head-to-head battle between the two since then and enters Sunday's final in red-hot form.
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Here's a look at the full TV schedule for the final:
| 8 a.m. GMT | Eurosport 1 (UK) | Eurosport Player |
| 3 a.m. ET | ESPN (U.S.) | WatchESPN |
Preview
Murray had to work hard to book his fifth trip to the final of the Australian Open, beating Milos Raonic in five sets on Friday.
The Scot battled back from a 2-1 deficit and took advantage of an unfortunate injury to the powerful Canadian, who enjoyed a phenomenal start to the match but visibly slowed down in the final set.
Murray deserves tons of credit for battling his way back into the match, even if he looked far from his best. He knows he'll have to do far better to get past Djokovic in the final, as he told Michael Beattie of the event's official website:
"Five finals is a great achievement. You can't take that away from me. I should be happy about that.
I have a very good shot on Sunday if I play my best tennis, like I said. I need to do it for long enough to have a chance. I'm aware of that. I don't think many people are expecting me to win on Sunday. I have to just believe in myself, have a solid game plan, and hopefully execute it and play well.
There's no reason it's not possible for me to win.
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The stats certainly favour Djokovic entering the contest. The Serb has never lost a final at the Rod Laver Arena, per BBC Sport, and has beaten Murray in three of those contests. ESPN Stats & Info shared the head-to-head numbers for both players:
Djokovic looked nothing short of spectacular in his semi-final win over Roger Federer, handing the Swiss veteran just three games throughout the first two sets and advancing in four.
The World No. 1 has had some minor struggles with accuracy in this year's Australian open, but his defence and return game look on point. With the exception of the poor showing against Gilles Simon in Round 4, he's looked nothing short of dominant.
Eurosport's Tumaini Carayol thought his dismantling of Federer in the semi-final was further proof the gap in class between Djokovic and the rest of the pack is growing:
"The gulf between Djokovic and the rest of the field has long since resembled a dark, unending pit of doom, but all indications are that this pit is continuing to widen. In reality, it should have been obvious for some time. Djokovic’s 2015 was a remarkable masterpiece from the second tournament onwards, but after he wrapped up the incredible achievement of his third slam victory at the US Open, it only improved further.
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Murray boasts the defensive qualities to frustrate the Serb, and he showed them on Friday in the win over Raonic, forcing the Canadian into plenty of mistakes with deep returns and solid work from the baseline.
The Scot may have been forced to play five sets just two days before the final―compared to four for Djokovic a day earlier―but he managed to limit the length of the rallies and should have fresh legs on Sunday.
As ever, concentration will be key for Murray. The 2013 Wimbledon champion tends to go through stretches of poor play when his serve isn't clicking, and against a top talent like Djokovic, who happens to be among the best returners in tennis, a slump like that is a recipe for disaster.
Last year's final was a prime example, as Murray imploded after keeping the first two sets close. The Scot should take a hard look at the tape of the first two sets of that match and take confidence in how he frustrated Djokovic—and ensure he keeps it up this time around.
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