1, who also won the title in 2008 when the event was held in Shanghai, draws level with Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras as the second-most successful players in tournament history, behind only Federer’s six crowns. “This could not have been a better finish. It’s been a long season, but the best of my life”, said Djokovic.
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Djokovic said clashes between the pair were always nervy affairs as he prepared to face his rival for a second time at London’s O2 Arena this week – Federer having got the better of the Serb in the group stage. Hopefully I’ll be able to play better than I’ve done a few days ago.
“Give me some time to recharge my batteries and then I’ll think about next season”. “I had a lot of great things in my game this year”. He played 88 matches in the season and won 82 of them.
The pro-Federer crowd leaned forward, fearing the worst, when Djokovic grabbed two match points on their hero’s serve. “But I think the way to beat him is the way Roger plays him and that is mixing it up with coming in”. He won doubles gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics with Stan Wawrinka, but lost the singles final to Andy Murray at the London Games in 2012, shortly after beating the Briton for his seventh Wimbledon title on the same Centre Court at the All England Club.
Breaking his French Open duck, and claiming the career Grand Slam with it, will obviously be high on Djokovic’s list of priorities for 2016.
The only tournament in which he did not reach the final was his first of the season, with Djokovic the first man ever to reach 15 consecutive finals in a season, and his haul included three grand slams and six Masters series trophies.
It will be a rematch of last year’s ill-fated final where Federer was forced to withdraw before a ball was struck due to injury.
“I go to the net when I am confident”, the two-time World Tour Finals runner-up explained.
He was worth it, holding his nerve under intense pressure as the Swiss strove against tiredness to make a fight of it. The world No1, ridiculously ahead of the field in the rankings, picked up 1,300 points he probably did not need in winning 6-3, 6-4 in 80 minutes and is unchallenged on any surface against any opponent as the best player in the world.
“I’ve been trying to really pay as equal attention to the work and the recovery, as well, mental and physical”. Other than Doha, I’ve played all finals.
In the 2014 semis, they embarked on one of the most draining matches of the season – almost three hours of cut-throat tennis that Federer won 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (8/6) after saving four match points along the way. The set went with serve until at 4 games apiece when Berdych hit a couple of unforced errors and Federer secured the break from there.
Two brilliant baseline winners – one backhand flick down-the-line and one off his forehand side -brought the score to 40/30 with Djokovic serving at 1-1 in second set, but once again Federer was unable to close the door. He had to save three break points in the eighth game but Djokovic came at him again strongly in the 10th.
Djokovic finished the season with 16,585 ranking points, just 425 points off matching the combined total of No 2 Murray & No 3 Federer.
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But for at least one brief stretch at the 2015 World Tour Finals, two of the all-time greats are back on top.
