Novak Djokovic started his quest for a record-equalling sixth ATP Finals title on Monday by overpowering Stefanos Tsitsipas to end the Greek’s year-end No. 1 ATP Ranking chances.
Djokovic produced a ruthless performance to move to the next round defeating Tsitsipas 6-4, 7-6(4). In Turin, the Serbian swiftly discovered his range, breaking early to seize the initiative. With his precision groundstrokes and a variety of dazzling passing shots, the seventh seed moved Tsitsipas about the court and eventually won after an hour and 37 minutes.
“The first game was very important to break his serve. Starting with a break of serve is obviously a huge boost in confidence and a relief as well because we both knew it would be a tight match,” ATP.com quoted Djokovic as saying.
Djokovic now leads Tsitsipas 10-2 in their ATP Head2Head series, having overcome the 24-year-old en route to the crown in Astana and the final in Paris in the past month. “We have played some really close matches in the past few tournaments against each other. It was very important to start off well. I held my serve really well throughout the match. I played a great tie-break, very solid all the way through,” Djokovic said.