Novak Djokovic looked as though he could hardly stand after winning his first French Open title yesterday, bent over with his hands on his knees.

He gathered himself, drew a heart with his racket in the clay dust and then lay down in the middle of it, on his back.

Gustavo Kuerten, who did the same thing when he won the French Open, looked on from the crowd with a big smile on his face.

As has become his habit at this French Open he has made his own, Djokovic then celebrated with the ball girls and boys, gathering them together and then all raising their arms to the skies together.

“It’s a very special moment, the biggest of my career,” said a jubilant Djokovic after. “It’s nice to see the sun has finally come out after 10 days of rain and it was great to see many fans for this final and I hope you enjoyed watching our tennis.

“I felt today something that I never felt before at Roland Garros, I felt the love of the crowd, I drew the heart on the court, like Guga [Kuerten], which he gave me permission to do. My heart will always be with you on this court.”

Murray looked crushed, his eyes red, as he sat blankly on his chair at court side.

It was his 10th grand slam final, all of them against either Djokovic or Roger Federer.

But the Scot was gracious in defeat, calling his opponent “phenomenal.”

He said: “Firstly I’d like to thank my team and all of my friends and family who came. I’d like to thank all the crowd, it was a fantastic atmosphere today.

“Congratulations to Novak’s team — you deserve it, well done. To Novak, this is his day. What he’s achieved, the last 12 months is phenomenal, winning all the grand slams in one year is an amazing achievement.

“It’s so rare in tennis and for me personally, it sucks to lose the match, but I’m proud to have been part of today.”

Djokovic responded to the praise, saying: “I want to start off by saying congratulations to Andy for a great tournament and it was a great pleasure to share these special moments with you.

“I’m sure we will see you with the big trophies very soon. My family, my team, my loves, thank you so much for tolerating everything on a daily basis.

“It’s one of the most special moments of my career and I want to thank everyone here for their support — thank you from my heart, and I hope to see you next year.”

Djokovic became the first man in nearly half a century to win four consecutive major championships, with this win completing a career grand slam.