This one took exactly four hours and featured some stunning rallies, with both players openly showing amazement at some of the shots coming back from the other side. And just to add to the drama, there was a five-minute rain delay with Wawrinka serving at 5-5 in the fifth.
Djokovic frequently held up and pinched his thumb and forefinger together to show how close the shots were to either hitting or missing the lines. The six-time major winner had to constantly serve to stay in the match after an early exchange of breaks in the fifth set and the pressure finally told.
After all the superb shot making, it was a mis-hit from Wawrinka that set up match point. Djokovic chased the floating service return to the net but skewed his cross-court drop shot too wide. He then missed a volley on match point, ending a run of 28 consecutive wins dating back to his U.S. Open final defeat to Rafael Nadal.
"He took his opportunities. He deserved his big win today," Djokovic said. "There's nothing I can say. I gave it my best, I gave it my all. It wasn't to be this time.
"He showed his mental strength and he deserved to win -- the only thing I can say is congratulations."
Djokovic hadn't lost at Melbourne Park since 2010, when he went down to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals, and has been unquestionably the best player on Rod Laver Arena since 2011.
