Australian Open 2016: Updated Men's Bracket and Final Predictions

Andy Murray climbed a huge mountain in beating Milos Raonic in the Australian Open semifinals. Now he has an even bigger one to climb Sunday in the final against top-seed Novak Djokovic.

It is the fifth time in his career that Murray has reached the championship round in the event, and he is still seeking his first championship. Three of his losses in the final round have come against Djokovic.

Murray outlasted Raonic 4-6, 7-5, 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, 6-2 in a grueling match that featured 23 aces off the racket of the powerful Canadian.

While Murray was only able to fashion nine aces and did not get his first serve in as often as Raonic, Murray showed patience and perseverance in prevailing in the final two sets of the match. He was much more effective than his opponent on second serves, as he won 32 of 47 points in that category. 

Raonic struggled to win those points, succeeding on just 25 of 57 second serves.

"[I] just tried to keep going, keep making as many returns as possible and continue to make it difficult for him," Murray told ESPN tennis editor Matt Wilansky. "Eventually, I was able to engage in more baseline rallies and dictate more of those points, which made him do more of the running."

That's unlikely to be the case against Djokovic, who excels at dictating the pace in the large majority of his matches. Nevertheless, Murray expressed confidence in his chances of winning his first Australian Open singles title.

"

Murray on Djokovic: "I have a very good shot on Sunday if I play my best tennis." https://t.co/d5lDYbkp0L #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/2TQgoVu4Dk

— Australian Open (@AustralianOpen) January 29, 2016"

Aaron Favila/Associated Press

Djokovic earned his spot in the finals when he defeated long-time rival Roger Federer in four sets in the other semifinal. 

Djokovic was at the top of his game in winning the first two sets in 54 minutes, allowing Federer to win just three games in the process. After Federer showed some life in winning the third set, Djokovic regained control and won handily in the fourth set.

"

Watch highlights of @DjokerNole's 'unbelievable' form v @rogerfederer in @AustralianOpen SFs https://t.co/EBpKZwr5Qc pic.twitter.com/Tia0PKLQ4W

— ATP World Tour (@ATPWorldTour) January 28, 2016"

“I think against Roger, these first two sets have been probably the best two sets I've played against him overall I think throughout my career,” Djokovic told Alix Ramsay of AusOpen.com. “I've had some moments against him in sets where I've played on a high level, but this was, yeah, I think a different level than from before."

Djokovic has held the upper hand in his head-to-head competition with Murray, holding a 21-9 edge. Djokovic had won eight consecutive matches against Murray before the No. 2 seed turned things around with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 victory at the Rogers Cup finals in Montreal last summer. Djokovic has beaten Murray twice since then.

Prediction

Murray showed a fine all-around game in outlasting Raonic, but he was not at his best when it came to his serve or hitting winners throughout the match.

Any player who is going to seriously challenge Djokovic certainly has to have the kind of relentless attitude that Murray showed against Raonic, but his game also needs to be at his sharpest.

Djokovic is at the top of his game, and he showed it by hammering Federer in the first two sets of their match. The belief here is that Federer is still a better player than Murray, and that means the Scottish star is likely to have a very difficult time against the world's top-ranked player.

Murray should have enough ability to keep from getting beaten in straight sets, but Djokovic will win the first Grand Slam tournament of the year with relative ease.

Finals: Djokovic, 6-3, 6-2, 5-7, 6-4.

---

All stats courtesy of AusOpen.com unless otherwise noted.