TENNIS players tend to be optimists, by necessity, so when Andy Murray takes on Novak Djokovic in the final of the Miami Open today, he will ignore statistics and believe that he can break his losing run against the world No 1 and claim a third title in his adopted home.

Djokovic has won their past six encounters, and nine of the past 10, including the Australian Open final and their semi-final in Indian Wells just a fortnight ago.

It is a run of form that suggests the Serb has a mental hold over Murray but the Scot knows better than anyone the ebbs and flows of a match-up throughout a career.

The pair, who both turn 27 next month, have met 25 times, with Djokovic leading 17-8 and you have to go back to the Wimbledon final of 2013 to find the last time Murray came out on top.

That momentous day will live forever in the Murray memory, however, and the Scot, in as good form now as he has been for two years, is determined to play in the same manner as he did that day.

"I know I need to play a high level tennis," said Murray, who was particularly impressive on Friday when beating Tomas Berdych to reach what is his first Masters 1000 final in two years. "He obviously returns well so you need to get the balance right between being patient and also dictating the points when you get the opportunity."

Much has been made of Murray's biggest weakness, the lack of consistent power and variety on his second serve, an area some players have exploited in recent times.

Djokovic will attack the Murray second serve not by going for winners; rather, he will try to put his old friend under pressure, trusting himself to come out on top in the kind of gruelling rally typical of clashes between the two.

When you have lost six times in a row to someone, there will inevitably be some mental baggage but after a tough 2014, Murray is improving with every week and in Miami, he has shown some of his best tennis since that Wimbledon triumph.

In particular, the sight of Murray standing well inside the baseline on second serve, looking to dictate and come forward whenever possible, has been encouraging to see and he will try to do the same against Djokovic, as tough as that may be in reality.

"I'll definitely try to be aggressive on his second serve, that's something I've done well this week, I've felt, and maybe in Indian Wells something I didn't do so much," Murray said. "I'll be inside the baseline attacking the second serve and just hopefully play a cleaner march from the beginning and see what happens but I've played well this week, much better than in Indian Wells."

Knowing the nuances of the stadium court at Crandon Park is undoubtedly an advantage for Murray but it's not as if Djokovic is a stranger to the place, having won the title four times.

Victory for Murray would clearly be a massive boost but even if he comes off second-best, he will console himself with the fact that it has been a vastly improved first three months of the year.

The Australian Open final was a close match, especially for the first three sets, and both men have kicked on since then.

It is worth remembering that Djokovic has lost just once this year and the Serb is walking tall, feeling he has the mental edge, especially when it gets physical.

"[The record] can only serve as a positive fact prior to our match. The fact that I won, I think, the last six, seven matches that we played against each other, especially the one just recently in Indian Wells, gives me confidence and maybe a slight mental advantage.

"But we're talking about small margins. That's always the case when we play against each other. Very few points, details, can decide a winner.

"We have very similar games. We already played twice this year, and of course in a big match in the Australian Open final which was very, very physical, very close. I expect a battle, long rallies. I know his game pretty well, as well as he knows mine."

Having never beaten Djokovic when losing the first set, Murray will be desperate for a fast start, something he could not manage in Indian Wells.

But statistics change and records are there to be broken and what a nice wedding present it would be to himself should Murray come out on top.