TURIN, ITALY – NOVEMBER 19: Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates to Jannik Sinner of Italy during the … [+]
Novak Djokovic — already arguably the GOAT of men’s tennis — continued his assault on the record books by winning a record 7th ATP Finals title on Sunday in Turin, Italy.
The 36-year-old world No. 1 broke a tie with Roger Federer by downing No. 4 Jannik Sinner, 6-3, 6-3 in 1 hour, 43 minutes, to win the championship one day after he dismantled No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets in the semis.
Djokovic already was the oldest winner at the event last year at the age of 35.
“It’s one of the best seasons I’ve had in my life, no doubt,” Djokovic said at the close of a 55-6 campaign. “To crown it with a win against a hometown hero in Jannik, who has played amazing tennis this week, is phenomenal. I’m very proud of the performances these past two days against Alcaraz and Sinner, probably the best two players in the world next to me and [Daniil] Medvedev at the moment — and the way they have been playing, I had to step it up.
“I had to win the matches and not wait for them to hand me the victory and that’s what I’ve done. I think I played different tactically than I did in the group stage against Jannik, and just overall it was a phenomenal week.”
Most Nitto ATP Finals Titles per the ATP
1) Novak Djokovic 7
2) Roger Federer 6
T3) Ivan Lendl 5
T3) Pete Sampras 5
5) Ilie Nastase 4
After winning his first match in Turin, Djokovic was already assured of being the Year-End No. 1 for a record-extending 8th time.
In winning the final match of the year, Djokovic exacted a measure of revenge after the 22-year-old Italian had beaten him in Group Play earlier this week, 7-5, 6-7(5), 7-6(2) in 3 hours, 9 minutes.
Djokovic will take home $2,201,000 and Sinner $1,105,000.
Djokovic went 27-1 this season in Grand Slam events — winning his record-tying 24th major title at the U.S. Open — losing only to Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final.
First appeared on www.forbes.com