2018 in review: Novak Djokovic regains his hard-court dominance
* ATP 250 Kitzbuhel: Martin Klizan (SVK) vs Denis Istomin (UZB) 6-2 6-2
In only the third ATP final since 1990 with two qualifiers or a lucky loser, the 29-year-old Slovak Martin Klizan won his sixth ATP title from as many finals played, toppling Denis Istomin 6-2 6-2 in an hour and eight minutes for his first triumph since the summer of 2016 when he conquered Hamburg. This was the third meeting between these two and the second win for the Slovak who served at 73% and lost just 14 points in eight service games, fending off all four break points to keep his serve intact. On the other hand, Istomin failed to bring his "A game" in his fifth ATP final, losing almost 50% of the points behind his initial shot to face four break points and lose serve on every of those to settle with the runner-up spot. Martin broke in the third game when Denis netted a forehand and the Slovak built a 4-1 lead in just 15 minutes after forcing an error from the Uzbek in game five.
Klizan saved two break points with winners in game six and the opening set was in his hands after 32 minutes following a service winner at 5-2. The second set was almost identical to the first, with a left-hander earning a break in game three after a backhand slice error from Istomin. Two service winners got Martin out of jail in the following game, fending off two break points to confirm the lead and the match was pretty much in his hands when he scored another break in game five, this time at love. Serving for the title in game eight, Martin held at love to seal the deal and lift his sixth ATP trophy in a career so far.
* Masters 1000 Toronto: Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) 6-2 7-6(4)
Competing in Toronto for the first time since 2010 when Andy Murray stopped him in the semi-final, world number 1 and the four-time Canada Open champion Rafael Nadal delivered his 33rd Masters 1000 crown after a solid 6-2 7-6 win over a birthday boy Stefanos Tsitsipas, the youngest Masters 1000 finalist since Novak Djokovic in Miami 2007! This was the 40th win for Rafa from 43 matches so far in 2018, joining Alexander Zverev at the top of the list of players with the most triumph this season and it was certainly one of his best starts of the year ever despite injuries that sidelined him from the court between the Australian Open and April.
Rafa achieved another milestone with this win, becoming only the fourth player in the Open era with 80 ATP titles after Jimmy Connors, Ivan Lendl and Roger Federer and he was also the first player with five titles in 2018, including three Masters 1000 events. Stefanos did an amazing job in reaching the title match, beating four top-10 players in a row (the youngest player to do so since 1973 when the ranking was introduced) and facing a match point against Alexander Zverev and Kevin Anderson to play in his second ATP final after Barcelona this April when he won just three games against Rafa.
He gave his best in this one in the second set as well in overcoming a break deficit and create a set point on the return in game 12, only to be denied by Rafa who lost the ground in the closing stages of the match despite a pearless performance before serving for the match at 5-4 when Tsitsipas broke back to extend the encounter and almost send it into a decider. In the end, the Spaniard won the tie break 7-4 to lift his 19th ATP title on hard and the first since the US Open last year. It was a marvelous performance from Nadal until 6-2 5-4, sailing through his service games and dominating with his forehand to have the upper hand from the baseline.
Despite that weak period in the last part of the match, he finished the match with 27 winners and 20 unforced errors while Tsitsipas hit 15 direct points but also 25 mistakes. Nothing could separate them in the shortest points up to four strokes and Rafa created the crucial gap in the more challenging rallies from five to eight strokes and those that reached the ninth shot. After playing matches like this numerous times before, Nadal made the best possible start, dominating in his service games and using his opportunities on the return to take the opener 6-2 in just 34 minutes. He lost just one point in four service games and Stefanos was nowhere near that pace, serving under 50% and getting broken twice.
The Spaniard drew first blood in game three when he converted the third break point for an early lead and he found himself 4-1 up after just 22 minutes thanks to a forehand error from Tsitsipas in game five. An outstanding forehand winner pushed Nadal 5-1 up and the opening set was in his hands after another hold at love in game eight and a forehand error from Stefanos who never found his rhythm or solve how to keep the points on his racquet. Rafa was 14-5 up in the longer points and he was marching towards the finish line, especially after the perfect start of set number two as well.
He broke the youngster in the very first game and they both served well in the following eight games, leaving Nadal to serve for the title at 5-4. Stefanos raised his level compared to the opening set and he was there to challenge Nadal with aggressive and well-balanced tennis that earned the place in the final for him. The problem was, he won just three points on the return since the start of the match and no one could have expected he will do much in that 10th game either. Out of sudden, Rafa lost his momentum and he got broken at 30, missing a chance to seal the deal and having to save a set point when he served again two games later.
He fends it off after a lucky net cord to set up a tie break where he was the clear favorite. Tsitsipas had an early mini-break but Rafa erased the deficit after a huge forehand error from the Greek in the fourth point. A service winner moved Nadal 4-3 up and he grabbed a crucial mini-break when Stefanos' forehand finished in the net. Another loose forehand from the 20-year-old gave Nadal championship point and he fired a forehand cross court winner in the 11th point for a 7-4 and the record-breaking title.
* Masters 1000 Cincinnati: Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs Roger Federer (SUI) 6-4 6-4
Just like Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic had made a rather slow start in Cincinnati, winning just one of the opening four matches he played in Ohio before he changed his fortune in 2008 when he reached the final for the first time, losing in two tie breaks to Andy Murray. It was hard to believe back then that one of the best players on hard courts of all time will struggle so much to claim Cincinnati crown but it seemed he wasn't destined to lift the trophy there, losing further four finals in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2015 when he played there for the last time.
Three years after a 7-6 6-3 loss in the final to Roger, Novak made the sixth final that proved to be the decisive one for him, outplaying the seven-time champion Federer 6-4 6-4 in an hour and 20 minutes to grab the crown and achieve the ultimate tennis record as the first player who won all nine Masters 1000 tournaments! With the ATP Finals, all four Majors and Davis Cup crown already in his collection, Novak cemented his status of one of the greatest players of all time once again, setting the record that will hardly be repeated anytime soon.
To tell the truth, both players struggled before the final clash but they were the deserved finalists, battling with their rivals and the rain to set up the 46th meeting and the first since the Australian Open in 2016, with Novak now leading against Roger 24-22. This was the 31st Masters 1000 crown for Novak and the first since Toronto 2016, certainly one of the most beloved ones as it delivered Career Golden Masters to him after so many finals lost in Cincinnati, including three versus Roger. The main elements in Novak's win were his amazing return, the overall performance on serve and domination from the baseline and in the shortest rallies where Federer should have had the advantage.
Novak lost just 14 points in 10 service games, with only one loose service game when he allowed Roger to convert the only break point he created in the entire match. On the other hand, he tamed Roger's serve beautifully, returning as many balls as possible to leave the Swiss with no free points and shifting the battlefield to his familiar ground on the baseline. Federer lost 42% of the points in his games to suffer three breaks from six chances he gave to Novak, unable to impose his shots or to keep the points on his racquet.
Djokovic had 12 winners and 16 unforced errors and that was much better than Federer's 22-39 ratio, spraying too many forehand errors and losing the ground completely in the shortest rallies up to four strokes where Novak had a 49-35 advantage which pretty much gave him the title. The Swiss was forced to save break points in the very first game of the match and they both found the rhythm on serve in the next five games to stay locked up at 3-3. Roger wasted two game points in the seventh game and he played a loose forehand to lose serve, falling 5-3 behind after four service winners from Novak in the following game.
Serving for the opener in the 10th game, Djokovic blasted four winners yet again to take it 6-4 in 37 minutes, hoping for more of the same in the rest of the match. Federer made the better start in set number two, taking a 2-0 lead after a double fault from Novak in the second game but he got broken in the very next game after a poor forehand, losing the advantage and the momentum he shortly held. The Serb secured another break in the seventh game when his forehand down the line found an open court and he brought the match home with another comfortable hold at 5-4, notching the title and entering the record books once again.
* ATP 250 Winston-Salem: Daniil Medvedev (RUS) vs Steve Johnson (USA) 6-4 6-4
The 22-year-old Russian Daniil Medvedev conquered his second ATP crown after a solid 6-4 6-4 win over the 8th seed Steve Johnson in an hour and 24 minutes, improving his score in 2018 to 26-17. Daniil claimed his maiden title on the Tour in the second week of 2018 when he went all the way as a qualifier in Sydney, defeating another youngster Alex de Minaur in the final but struggling in the rest of the season before Winston-Salem, playing in the quarter-final only once in the next 17 events and losing five matches in a row on clay during the spring. Medvedev raised his game here at the Wake Forest University Complex, not losing a single set in six matches and standing strong in the final against Steve as well.
Playing against each other for the fifth time in the last two seasons, Daniil grabbed the fourth win over the American after losing just four points behind his first serve, defending the second good enough to face just one break point while serving for the match. He managed to save it and the pressure was entirely on Johnson who had to play against eight break points, suffering one break in each set to end on the losing side, missing a chance to win the third title on the home soil in 2018, all on different surfaces. Medvedev found the rhythm in his games right from the start and he created two break points in game five that Steve fends off with two aces.
Nonetheless, the American netted an easy backhand in game nine to give his serve away and Daniil held in the following game with five service winners to wrap up the opener 6-4 in 37 minutes. After six good holds on both sides at the start of the second set, Johnson squandered two game points in game seven to give his serve away after a forced error, sending the Russian 4-3 up and drifting further away from the title. Daniil earned three match points on the return in game nine but he wasted them all, having to serve for the title in the following game.
He was yet to face a break point but that all changed in that 10th game when he offered Steve a chance to prolong the match. He saved it with a service winner and a smash winner gave him the fourth match point, the first on his serve. Another smash winner sealed the deal for the Russian and he was thrilled with the way he performed, moving to the US Open where he lost in the third round to Borna Coric.
* Grand Slam US Open: Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs Juan Martin del Potro (ARG) 6-3 7-6(4) 6-3
Just four months ago, Novak Djokovic was defeated in the second round of Madrid Masters by Kyle Edmund, suffering his sixth loss in 12 matches since the start of 2018 and having a lot of work to be done in order to recover his shape and get back where he belongs after that nasty elbow injury that had been bothering him for quite a while. The first signs of improvement had been seen in Rome where he played a challenging match against Rafael Nadal in the semis before reaching the Roland Garros quarter-final and the final at Queen's, wasting a match point against Cilic to stay empty-handed.
Novak did lift a trophy a few weeks later and it was the biggest one in our sport, conquering his fourth Wimbledon crown and completing his comeback in Cincinnati where he toppled Roger Federer to become the first player who achieved a Career Golden Masters, heading to New York as one of the favorites for the title. The Serb has been one of the most consistent figures in the history of the US Open, reaching 11 consecutive semi-finals since 2007 (he was forced to miss the last Grand Slam of the season in 2017) and seven finals overall, winning two finals in 2011 and 2015.
Novak had now won his third US Open title and the 14th Major overall with a 6-3 7-6 6-3 triumph over the 2009 winner Juan Martin del Potro in three hours and 15 minutes to secure his place in the history of our sport once again. After Wimbledon and Cincinnati, it was clear that Novak is enjoying tennis again and that he plays injury-free and highly motivated to get back where he belongs. He needed just a few tournaments to turn his season upside down and become the main rival to Rafael Nadal for the year-end number 1 position, with nothing to defend in the rest of the year.
Djokovic managed to overpower six rivals and enormous heat and humidity in New York to enter his eighth US Open final, moving ahead of Roger Federer and tying with Ivan Lendl and Pete Sampras who had also played in the title match eight times. In addition, this was the 23rd Grand Slam final for Novak, just one behind Rafael Nadal, and the 14th on hard courts which moves him to the top of the list together with Roger Federer, looking good to pass the great rival in 2019. In addition, Novak is only the fourth player in history with 14 Major crowns (nine on hard courts) and this was his 71st ATP title and the 53rd on his beloved hard courts.
Novak is only the second player in the Open era after Roger Federer with three titles at three different Slams and he joins Federer, Sampras and Nadal as the fourth player with four seasons with at least two Slams won. Juan Martin del Potro was competing in his second Grand Slam final, the first in nine years, and he reached the title match in a great fashion, spending just over 14 hours on the court (Nadal was forced to retire in the semi-final due to a knee injury) and losing one set to secure the place in the final and hope for the fifth win over Novak in 19 matches, the first since Rio Olympics two years ago.
Despite a great effort, he was unable to upend the mighty rival who played on a very high level almost during the entire match, taking the most important points in the closing stages of all three sets to bring the encounter home in straight sets and start a huge celebration. Del Potro delivered a solid package but Novak was simply above that, doing just about everything better to deserve the title in straight sets. They had the similar percentages behind the first serve (just six aces for Delpo) and Novak did his magic on the second serve, facing six break points and losing serve only twice.
On the other hand, he won 39% of the return points, taming his rival's serve in a more efficient way and breaking him four times from seven opportunities he got. Djokovic had 31 winners and 38 unforced errors while the Argentinian had the same number of winners but also 47 unforced errors, unable to defend his backhand or make more damage with his forehand against such a strong rival who was covering the court in a manner of the best mover in the sport. The opening set was decided with one loose service game from del Potro at 3-4 despite having a game point, allowing Novak to close it with a solid hold in the ninth game for a 6-3 when Delpo netted a forehand.
The second set has to be one of the longest in Grand Slam finals, lasting for over 90 minutes and containing a 20-minute game on Novak's serve at 3-4! The Serb broke in the third game following another loose forehand from his rival to continue his steady ride but Juan Martin finally managed to score a break of his own, leveling the score at 3-3 and staying on the same level with Novak the end of the set. Actually, he had a chance to grab another break in that mammoth game but Novak fends off three break points for a huge hold that gave him a lot of confidence. Four good holds on both sides sent them into a tie break and they traded four mini-breaks in the first five points to stay locked up at 4-4.
Novak scored a crucial mini-break in the following point after a huge forehand error from del Potro and he won the next couple of points on serve to take the breaker 7-4 after forcing an error from Juan Martin, moving just a set away from the title. Djokovic seized control with another break in the fourth game of the third set but Juan Martin was not to be denied before giving his everything, pulling the break back in the next game with a volley winner at the net to extend his chances. Nonetheless, Novak kept his coolness and he created another gap with a break at 15 in game eight following a backhand error from Delpo, sealing the deal with a smash winner a few minutes later to fall to the ground in disbelief after catching one of his childhood idols Pete Sampras on 14 Major crowns.
* ATP 250 St. Petersburg: Dominic Thiem (AUT) vs Martin Klizan (SVK) 6-3 6-1
The top seed Dominic Thiem secured the 11th ATP crown and the first on an indoor court after a dominant 6-3 6-1 win over the 2012 champion Martin Klizan in just 69 minutes. This was their fourth meeting and the first win for Thiem who had the upper hand from start to finish to bring the match home in no time at all, serving at 47% but dropping only 11 points in eight service games, fending off two break points to mount the pressure on the other side of the net and wait for his chances on the return.
Klizan played some great tennis before the final but he never found the ground against Dominic, dropping 45% of the points in his games and suffering four breaks from seven opportunities he gave to the Austrian to finish on the runner-up spot for the first time in seven ATP finals. The Slovak failed to control his shots and he made too many unforced errors, losing the edge in the shortest points against deep and accurate returns of his opponent. A left-hander fought well in the opening six games and he had a game points that could have moved him 4-3 in front.
He squandered them to get broken and Thiem moved 5-3 up with a forehand down the line winner, closing the set with another break in game nine for a 6-3. A forehand winner in game two pushed the top seed ahead in the second set and he made another easy hold in the third game to move 3-0 up after winning 12 of the opening 14 points. Martin suffered an ankle injury in the quarters and he struggled with the left knee in this match, unable to play at his 100%. Dominic grabbed another break in game six and he saved two break points in the following game to cross the finish line after a forehand error from Klizan, lifting his first indoor title and getting the reward after that heartbreaking loss to Nadal at the US Open.
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2SM5iyM
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