Novak Djokovic gave credit to Andy Murray after coming through a "thriller" to seal his place in Sunday's French Open final against Stan Wawrinka.
Television coverage of the men's final is scheduled for 9 a.m. ET on NBC.
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Also Saturday, Serena Williams won her third championship at Roland Garros, defeating against Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic. Williams won the first set 6-3 but stumbled in the second within reach of the championship.
The women's singles title went to a tiebreaker in the second set. Safarova won it, forcing a third set for which Williams seemed ill-equipped. But she won the match's final six games and her 20th grand slam title. Final: 6-3, 6-7 (2), 6-2.
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"I don't think I was lucky, I think I was playing some great tennis yesterday. He found his game late in the third. I had many opportunities to finish the match in straight sets, but credit to Andy," Djokovic said. "He showed why he's one of the biggest competitors and fighters on the tour. A bit different conditions, with sun and then later in the evening it got a bit slower. He was using his variety in the game very well."
Murray had no answer as Djokovic won the first two sets of an epic semifinal 6-3 6-3 on Friday, but Murray fought back to win the third set 7-5 before play was abandoned at 3-3 in the fourth because of the threat of a storm.
Djokovic would have been hoping to wrap up the match in quick time when play resumed on Saturday, but Murray ensured the world No. 1 would have to go the distance by winning the fourth set 7-5, again breaking at 5-5.
The class and mental strength of Djokovic shone through yet again, as he took just 36 minutes to win the decider 6-1 on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Wawrinka stands in the way of Djokovic and a first French Open title as he continues to take on all comers and eyes a fifth consecutive tournament victory.
Djokovic was relieved to end Murray's battling display of defiance.
"It was a really tough match, over four hours all together, yesterday and today. No different from any other match that we played against each other. It's always a thriller, always a marathon," Djokovic said. "He just came up with some great shots, great points. I want to congratulate him for a great tournament and a great fight, and I wish him all the best."