Djokovic last captured consecutive titles in 2011 and 2012 and also won in 2007.
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“I’ve been to watch training from other sides of the world and I’ve involved with UEFA a lot, whether it’s been watching the Euros or whether it’s been taking the Pro Licence coaches”.
But after some consideration, Djokovic decided to make the trip to Toronto.
“For sure I’m not fresh, you know, like two weeks ago”.
But after scoring an early break to go up 2-1 in the opener, Monfils failed to consolidate it. Djokovic broke right back and converted on four of five break-point opportunities overall. Among the names of the most recent champions, from 2013 to 2015, Djokovic’s name was notably absent from the victor column. But it was indeed true.
epa05450554 Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates with the Rogers Cup trophy after defeating Kei Nishikori of Japan in the final of the Rogers Cup Men?s Singles tennis tournament in Toronto, Canada, 31 July 2016. “It’s one of the biggest tournaments we have in sports”. “You don’t feel good on the court when you miss that kind of shot”. With the win Djokovic won his 30th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 title and became the first player to win the Rogers Cup four times. That momentum would carry through to Sunday’s final against Nishikori. “I did feel that it was just the right moment for me to ask”.
The cards were stacked against Nishikori going into the final. The Japanese man had beaten him before, twice, but had lost the last eight of their 11 matches.
The 29-year-old solidified a 4-2 lead from a love break of the fading Frenchman, and lined up three set points three games later.
In the first set, it was Djokovic who would strike first.
In the first set, Djokovic could only nod in appreciation as one of Nishikori’s rare aces sailed by him on game point to make it 2-2.
The variation and placement that the new-and-improved Djokovic now demonstrates on his service games came into fruition against Nishikori today.
Halep won a sloppy first set in 43 minutes despite hitting just one victor. It was a challenge of the highest order, but the Nishikori was having a good season, give or take the injury problems that have often peppered his career. Nishikori beat second-seeded Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland 7-6 (6), 6-1 in the first semifinal.
Hard courts in particular proved successful, with the Memphis title, the Miami final, the quarters at Indian Wells, before on clay, reaching the final in Barcelona and two semis at the prestigious Madrid and Rome Masters-losing to Djokovic on both occasions. He wouldn’t waste it. “I have had plenty of success in this particular category of events, and I’m very grateful for that because I always value them as much as I value Grand Slams”.
“So I hope I can get revenge this time”, Nishikori said. The Romanian took the set on the second of five potential set points in the tiebreaker when Keys hit a backhand wide.
“I had to stay committed from the beginning and I’m very, very pleased with the way I played”.
Despite struggling earlier in the week, the world number one quickly found the elite return game that has separated him from the rest of top players. But dig a little deeper into those statistics and another trend emerges. Djokovic calmly regains the advantage by winning three straight games over Nishikori.
But participating in the Olympics is not just about winning gold.
“It was a shame to lose the final but it was still a great week for me”, Nishikori said.
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The world No. 1 showed poor footwork, a odd lack of balance, shrouded injury, and a lot of rust in his first tournament since Wimbledon. “I’m going to try to extract that positivity out of that huge attention and energy and hopefully put myself in a position to battle for a medal”, he added. Then, he did something he’d never done before.
