Djokovic wins Indian Wells crown

Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic fought back to beat world No.1 Rafael Nadal

4-6 6-3 6-2 in the final to claim the Indian Wells Masters title.

The victory was Djokovic's 23rd straight match win and continued his 18-0 undefeated run in 2011, adding his third title of the year following his victories in Melbourne and Dubai.

The Serbian is set to move to No.2 in the world rankings this week following his defeat of current No.2 Roger Federer in the semi-finals.

It is Djokovic's sixth Masters series title.

The 23-year-old has looked invincible this season and Sunday's victory in the California desert underlined his dominance.

Djokovic fired four aces, two to hold serve in the third set, in the two-hour, 25-minute match to capture his second Indian Wells crown.

Djokovic took the second set in dramatic style, winning a marathon ninth game on the sixth set point after Nadal had saved five. The game, which lasted over 10 minutes, ended when Nadal hit a backhand wide in front of a near-capacity crowd of about 15,000.

Nadal hit another sliding forehand into the net on match point, sparking a celebration from Djokovic, who clenched both fists, threw his head back and screamed at the top of his lungs.

"I lost today, but I lost to one of the greatest," Nadal said.

Djokovic broke Nadal in the first game of the third set and cruised to victory from there. He hammered aces on the final points to hold serve in the fourth and sixth games.

Djokovic has compiled an incredible 18-match win streak this season and is 20-0 dating to the Davis Cup final in December where he won two singles matches. Besides winning the Australian Open, he captured his 20th career title last month in Dubai.

Two-time Indian Wells winner Nadal was on a blistering pace of his own as he came into the final having dropped just one set in the tournament.

Sunday's loss leaves the world No.1 without an ATP title this season. His last victory came in Tokyo in October.