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Djokovic, Nadal meet in another final

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Rafael Nadal (L) and Novak Djokovic pose with their trophies after the finals match at the U.S. Open, Sept. 2011 in New York. Djokovic won the match and the two square off Sunday with another major tournament title -- this time the Australian Open -- at stake. UPI/Monika Graff 
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Published: Jan. 28, 2012 at 6:00 AM

MELBOURNE, Jan. 28 (UPI) -- Rafael Nadal seeks to reverse a year of losses to Novak Djokovic in Sunday's final of the Australian Open.

The two top-ranked men's players -- Djokovic took over the top spot from Nadal last July 4 after beating him for championship at Wimbledon -- play for the seventh consecutive time with a tournament title at stake.

Djokovic is looking to repeat as Australian Open champion and collect his fifth major tournament title. Nadal has one Australian Open title (2009) among his 10 Grand Slam wins.

Nadal is 16-13 lifetime against Djokovic. But Djokovic won all six of their matches in 2011.

Djokovic won the Wimbledon and U.S. Open championships over Nadal last year.

To keep that streak alive, Djokovic will need to rest up from an intense 6-3, 3-6, 6-7 (4-7), 6-1, 7-5 semifinal against Andy Murray that took nearly 5 hours and lasted into early Saturday. Nadal should be well-rested for Sunday, having won his semifinal Thursday in four sets over Roger Federer.

"He has maybe a day advantage over me for recovery and for getting ready for the final," Djokovic said Friday. "That's going to be my main priority and concern the next day and a half, to physically be able to perform my best and be ready to play five sets. If I am able to do that, then I can believe that I can win."

Topics: Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, Roger Federer
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