Kjokovic captures his first Grand Slam crown

~ The Serbian followed up his semifinal victory against Federer with a four-set victory over Tsonga.

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Novak Djokovic withstood the expected barrage from upstart Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the first set, then rallied to win the Australian Open for his first Grand Slam title.

Djokovic fended off the Muhammad Ali lookalike 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6 (2) in the final on Sunday night, ending a sequence of 11 straight majors won by either Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal since Marat Safin's victory in 2005.

Djokovic had not lost a set in six matches leading into the final, including his semifinal win over two-time defending champion Federer.

But with unseeded Tsonga coming out swinging like he did in his straight-sets upset over No. 2 Nadal in the semifinals and three other top 14 players, that streak came to a sudden end.

Serbia's Novak Djokovic kisses the trophy after beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France, in the final of the Men's singles at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, Sunday, Jan. 27, 2008. (AP Photo/Rick Stevens)

The third-ranked Djokovic rebounded in the second and third sets, and after saving a crucial breakpoint in the fourth, dominated the tiebreaker to clinch his first major at his 13th attempt.

"You feel the expectations and pressure, so I'm very happy with the way I dealt with the pressure," Djokovic said. "Coming on against a player with nothing to lose -- he was going for the shots and he was very dangerous, especially in the first set -- I was pretty nervous."

The 20-year-old Djokovic was the youngest player since Stefan Edberg defeated Mats Wilander in 1985 to win the Australian title and the first man from Serbia to win a major.

Tsonga, who had been so aggressive earlier in the tournament, seemed more content to rally from the baseline, especially after getting passed several times.

"He was very dangerous," Djokovic said. "I was aware of that fact, but I was trying to stay with him because I knew sooner or later, with my style of game, I could get in control of the match, which I did in the middle of the second set."

Along with Tsonga, he had to overcome cramps.

Djokovic got treatment on the back of his left thigh while holding for a 3-2 lead in the fourth set, then fended off a break point while serving at 5-5.

Wanting to finish it off quickly, he raced through the tiebreaker -- with some help from Tsonga, who double-faulted to make it 5-1 and then sent a running forehand long to give Djokovic four championship points.

He only needed one as Tsonga hit a forehand wide.

Djokovic fell on his back, then got up to shake hands with Tsonga and put his arm around the Frenchman.