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Djokovic Storms Past Berdych, Secures Year-End No. 1 Ranking

Djokovic Storms Past Berdych, Secures Year-End No. 1 Ranking

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

Djokovic ATP Finals 2013 FB HEAD Djokovic Storms Past Berdych, Secures Year End No. 1 Ranking

 

Following up on his remarkably breezy matches in London so far this week, top seed Novak Djokovic extended his indoor record to 30 straight wins when he cruised past Tomas Berdych to remain undefeated in the round robin stage of the tournament and officially cement his year-end spot atop the rankings.

The Serbian star got off to a whirlwind start against his Czech opponent, as he took command of the match and jumped to a 3-0 lead within the first 10 minutes of the contest. He would maintain that double break advantage throughout the remainder of the set and would only surrender two games in the process.

The second set was much of the same from Djokovic, as he quickly secured another double break lead at 4-0 and appeared to be in a remarkably comfortable spot in his final round robin encounter.

Djokovic has now secured the year-end No. 1 ranking for the third time in four years, with the exception of 2013, which Nadal won. He is just the seventh player to achieve this feat and was awarded the trophy in front of legends John McEnroe, Boris Becker, Mats Wilander and Carlos Moya

“Being World No. 1 is probably one of the most difficult and biggest challenges that a tennis player can have, so it’s incredibly fulfilling and I’m very happy with this achievement,” said Djokovic. “It’s been a long year and it’s one of the ultimate challenges. I’m just glad to be standing here with the trophy knowing how many legends of the sport have done the same before.”

Bryans Reach WTF Semi-final, Awarded Year-End No. 1 Trophy

Bryans Reach WTF Semi-final, Awarded Year-End No. 1 Trophy

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

Bryans1 Bryans Reach WTF Semi final, Awarded Year End No. 1 Trophy

 

Three-time former champions Mike and Bob Bryan reached the semi-final round of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals on Friday, after they were awarded the year-end No. 1 trophy in an on-court ceremony.

The Bryan twins secured the year end trophy and ranking through their remarkable accomplishments, where they reached 102 titles and achieved the Career Golden Masters by winning the Shanghai Masters.

“It’s been a special year for us,” said Mike Bryan. “This year is definitely special – getting to 100 titles at the US Open and doing it at our home Slam. I’d like to thank my brother for being my partner all these years and not giving up on me.”

“We really appreciate it, all the votes and the love. To go out here during this week and play in front of packed crowds, have a bunch of fun and get the love from fans is awesome.”

The American pairing guaranteed their semi-final berth with a 7-6(3), 7-6(2) against third seeds Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares. The Bryans were placed in a tough spot, as the victor was expected to advance to the following round, and it was a competitive encounter throughout.

The Bryans will next meet Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin in the semi-final stage of the event. The last time they won the tournament was in 2009 and have since been absent from the final.

The contest is scheduled to take place on Saturday afternoon.

Novak Djokovic vs Kei Nishikori Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 SF

Novak Djokovic vs Kei Nishikori Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 SF

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

djokovic beats federer2 Novak Djokovic vs Kei Nishikori Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 SF

 

A rematch of the U.S. Open semi-final is scheduled to take place in the knockout stage of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals on Saturday in London, as Novak Djokovic and Kei Nishikori cross paths once again to determine who will reach the final berth of the season at the year-end championships. Djokovic leads the overall head-to-head series 3-2 after winning their most recent match in Paris.

Following up on his remarkably breezy matches in London so far this week, top seed Novak Djokovic cruised past Tomas Berdych to remain undefeated in the round robin stage of the tournament and officially cement his year-end spot atop the rankings. While the score line was not as bizarre as his recent 6-2, 6-0 win over Berdych at the China Open, Djokovic only surrendered four games throughout the entire match to win 6-2, 6-2.

Djokovic has now guaranteed the year-end No. 1 ranking for the third time in four years – just the seventh person to achieve that feat in the history of the men’s tour.

Although Nishikori was expected to meet Raonic in the third and final round robin match on Thursday, WTF alternate David Ferrer instead greeted him in a match that would mark the only three-set contest of the entire event this year. While Ferrer would start the match in fantastic fashion and would win the opening set with relative ease, Nishikori stormed back to win the second two sets in decisive fashion to close out the match 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.

Nishikori’s three-set victory over Ferrer was his fourth straight against the Spaniard and sets him up for a spot in the semi-final round of the tournament. After Andy Murray lost the first set to Federer, Nishikori officially qualified for knockout stage of the tournament on his first attempt.

“It’s never easy playing against David because he’s very consistent from the baseline,” said Nishikori. “If I want to win, I have to do something to break his tennis. From the second set, I was more aggressive. The final set was almost perfect.”

While Nishikori surprised many by defeating Novak Djokovic in four sets to reach his fist Grand Slam final, he was unable to follow up on that victory, as he lost to Djokovic in straight sets when they met several weeks back in the semi-final round of the Paris Bercy. Sadly, this will likely be another straight sets encounter, as Djokovic has been near unstoppable on the indoor surface this season.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic in Straight Sets

Stan Wawrinka vs Marin Cilic Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 RR

Stan Wawrinka vs Marin Cilic Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 RR

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

 Stan Wawrinka vs Marin Cilic Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 RR

 

The last of the group stage matches will feature a rather disappointing culmination for both Stan Wawrinka and Marin Cilic. While the Swiss No. 2 has managed one victory in Group A, Cilic, the reigning US Open champion, has gone 0-2 since the start of his debut at the year-end championships. Now, he will look to end his lackluster campaign on a high note, against a player who bageled him in their only previous meeting on the tour.

After taking part in some of the best matches of the last couple of years against Novak Djokovic, Wawrinka was simply unable to kick start the latest chapter in their storied rivalry in successful fashion. While he held an immedialte break advantage for a 2-0 lead early in the match, Wawrinka would go on to lose 12 of the next 13 games to lose 6-3, 6-0 to his Serbian adversary.

“It was not my best match, that’s for sure,” said Wawrinka. “He’s playing really well. He’s (has) confidence. He’s not missing much. Today I think it was more about what I was doing. He put me in a position that I think a little bit too much. I was not really clear what I’m going to do, because he’s doing everything well and he’s returning well.”

Faced with an opportunity to remain in the running for a semi-final berth in London, Marin Cilic failed to do so and eventually lost his second round robin to Berdych 6-3, 6-1 in 75 minutes. It allowed Berdych to maintain his perfect record in second round robin matches at the event.

“It seems that the things that I’m doing that are all basically going in a wrong direction,” said Cilic. “Especially with these guys at this kind of level, even small mistakes, or if you’re not at your best performances, the outcome is not going to be going in your favor. It’s unfortunate. I was looking forward to play here, to do well, to play good matches on a high level. It’s tough to handle.”

This marks just the second time that these two competitors will meet on the professional tour, with Wawrinka leading the head-to-head series 1-0. Their last encounter went three sets, but Cilic only managed to win 1 of 13 games in the second two sets to lose the match 3-6, 6-0, 6-1. Based on his current form in London, it would be hard to imagine him winning many more games against Wawrinka this time around.

Prediction: Stan Wawrinka in Straight Sets

Novak Djokovic One Win Away From Clinching Year-End No. 1 Ranking

Novak Djokovic One Win Away From Clinching Year-End No. 1 Ranking

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

djokovic501 Novak Djokovic One Win Away From Clinching Year End No. 1 Ranking

 

Novak Djokovic continued his dominant streak at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals with a spectacular performance against Stan Wawrinka to defeat the Swiss No. 2 in straight sets on Wednesday afternoon.

The top seed suffered from a slow start, where he was broken in his opening game in the match, but quickly turned things around to win 12 of the next 13 games to defeat Wawrinka 6-3, 6-0 in 66 minutes.

“I definitely didn’t expect it, but hoped that I can play this way again and the match result can go this way for me,” said Djokovic. “Obviously Stan wasn’t feeling his best today, made a lot of unforced errors and had a low percentage of first serves in. On my side, I just played very solid from all over the court. I think I covered the court very well, got a lot of balls back, mixed up the pace, got him off the comfort zone. That’s something that was part of my game plan.”

With his latest victory, Djokovic is now one win away from clinching the year-end No. 1 ranking. He also extended his indoor winning streak to 29 matches and has now managed two bagel sets against Top 10 players in the last month.

Wawrinka began the match in fantastic fashion but quickly fizzled away – evident in the second set, where he only won seven points.

“It was not my best match, that’s for sure,” said Wawrinka. “He’s playing really well. He’s (has) confidence. He’s not missing much. Today I think it was more about what I was doing. He put me in a position that I think a little bit too much. I was not really clear what I’m going to do, because he’s doing everything well and he’s returning well.”

Novak Djokovic vs Tomas Berdych Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 RR

Novak Djokovic vs Tomas Berdych Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 RR

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

Djoko2 Novak Djokovic vs Tomas Berdych Preview – ATP World Tour Finals 2014 RR

 

The final of the Group A round robin matches will feature a rematch of the lopsided China Open final between Novak Djokovic and Tomas Berdych. Their last indoor meeting was a disaster for Berdych and he will be faced with a similar task when he meets the inspired Djokovic again in 2014. Djokovic leads the Head to Head series 15-2 and will be looking to extend his indoor record.

Djokovic continued his winning ways at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals with a remarkably dominant showing against Stan Wawrinka on Wednesday afternoon. The Serbian star dispatched his Swiss adversary 6-3, 6-0 in 6 minutes to cement himself atop the Group A standings.

“I definitely didn’t expect it, but hoped that I can play this way again and the match result can go this way for me,” said Djokovic. “Obviously Stan wasn’t feeling his best today, made a lot of unforced errors and had a low percentage of first serves in. On my side, I just played very solid from all over the court. I think I covered the court very well, got a lot of balls back, mixed up the pace, got him off the comfort zone. That’s something that was part of my game plan.”

With his latest victory, Djokovic is now one win away from clinching the year-end No. 1 ranking. He also extended his indoor winning streak to 29 matches and has now managed two bagel sets against Top 10 players in the last month – one of which he will meet again here in London.

In a surprising statistic, Tomas Berdych maintained his undefeated record in second round robin matches at the WTF with a 6-3, 6-1 victory over reigning US Open champion Marin Cilic. Following his 6-1, 6-1 loss to Wawrinka in his opening match, this was a big step forward for the Czech No. 1.

“I felt much better on the court,” said Berdych. “But still it was not one of my best. That’s fair to say. But I think that’s the beauty of this event. One day you can be swept out from the court like I did and in two days’ time you can come up and you can play a different tennis.

This marks the 18th time that Djokovic and Berdych will meet on the professional tour, with the top seed holding a dominant 15-2 record against his adversary. Last month Djokovic demolished Berdych 6-2, 6-0 in the China Open final to hand the Czech his most embarrassing victory ever. While Berdych will likely find his way on the scoreboard this time around, he will be hard-pressed to penetrate the aura and confidence of Djokovic at this stage of the tournament.

Prediction: Novak Djokovic in Straight Sets

Roger Federer Bludgeons Andy Murray En Route to London Semifinal Berth

Roger Federer Bludgeons Andy Murray En Route to London Semifinal Berth

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

federer atp finals31 Roger Federer Bludgeons Andy Murray En Route to London Semifinal Berth

 

While the entire week has been a smorgasbord of lackluster matches and lopsided results, few anticipated that Roger Federer would trample over British No. 1 Andy Murray en route to the knockout stage of the Barclays ATP World Tour Final.

Federer maintained his perfect record this year at the O2 Arena with a 6-0, 6-1 beatdown of Murray in a contest that lasted a mere 56 minutes. Remarkably, it was also Federer’s 250th indoor victory and sent him into the semi-finals with a 3-0 record.

With Murray’s loss, Ke Nishikori will head to the semi-final round in his first attempt at the World Tour Finals. He defeated Ferrer in three sets after Raonic was forced to withdraw from the event with a low grade tear in his right quad.

“It wasn’t what I was looking for when I went on the court,” said Murray. “Everything he tried tonight came off. He has the ability to do that.

“I now have six, seven weeks before the next tournament. I have time to work on some stuff.”

Ferrer Replaces Raonic, Loses to Nishikori in Three Sets

Ferrer Replaces Raonic, Loses to Nishikori in Three Sets

  • Posted: Nov 14, 2014

atp finals nishikori structure Ferrer Replaces Raonic, Loses to Nishikori in Three Sets

 

Less than two hours before the start of the second-last Group B round robin match of the tournament, Milos Raonic announced that he would be forced to withdraw from the event with a low grade tear in his right quad. This left Spain’s David Ferrer as the necessary alternate to contest the match-up against Kei Nishikori on court.

While Ferrer would not have qualified for the semi-finals no matter the result on Thursday, he still came out and played some outstanding tennis early on to push the contest to a deciding set – the first one to take place in five days of elite-eight action. However, he was unable to maintain his set lead over the Japanese No. 1 and eventually bowed out of the tournament after losing 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.

“I think I began playing at a very good level without mistakes on my first serve,” said Ferrer. “The first games in the second set were not easy. Kei is playing very good. He is very confident in his game. In the third set, I was a little bit tight, and he was better.”

Nishikori’s three-set victory over Ferrer was his fourth straight against the Spaniard and sets him up for a spot in the semi-final round of the tournament. After Andy Murray lost the first set to Federer, Nishikori officially qualified for knockout stage of the tournament on his first attempt.

“It’s never easy playing against David because he’s very consistent from the baseline,” said Nishikori. “If I want to win, I have to do something to break his tennis. From the second set, I was more aggressive. The final set was almost perfect.”