Novak Djokovic will play his ninth ATP Finals final against Jannik Sinner. He has won six out of the eight finals he has played so far. The only two defeats came in 2016 and 2018 against Andy Murray and Alexander Zverev, respectively. Sinner has the chance to join the exclusive list, but Djokovic will give it his all for a record seventh title.
First making the cut in 2007, Djokovic bagged the ATP Finals trophy only once in his first five years. However, after that, he won the year-end championship for four consecutive years (2012-2015) in an unprecedented display of dominance. The Serb had to wait until 2022 to get his hands on the sixth title. He finished runner-up twice in between.
Looking for his fifth trophy on the trot in 2016, Djokovic looked inspired throughout the tournament. He advanced to the semi-finals with a perfect 3-0 round-robin record. He then dismantled Kei Nishikori, inflicting a double breadstick to get into the final without much difficulty. The #2 seed crossed paths with top seed Andy Murray in the final. The rampaging Brit swept aside Djokovic 6-3, 6-4 to win his only ATP Finals. This was the latter’s first runner-up finish in the tournament.
Djokovic was back for the 2018 ATP Finals after missing the second half of the 2017 season due to injury. He made a strong return after missing one edition and his journey followed a similar path. He again topped his group with a perfect record and dispatched his semi-final opponent in a lop-sided fashion. However, and rather surprisingly, he ran out of steam in the final. Djokovic was bested by Alexander Zverev, who won 6-4, 6-3 to bag his first major trophy.
One loss to a three-time Grand Slam-winning veteran and one to a 21-year-old rookie. Djokovic’s two defeats in the summit clash of the ATP Finals have come to very different opponents. Sinner is on a phenomenal run and will fancy adding his name to this distinct club.
A brief summary of all ATP Finals summit matches won by Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic won his first ATP Finals title in 2008, the same year as his first Grand Slam. Then called the Tennis Masters Cup, he beat Nikolay Davydenko in the final to lift the first of his six season-end championships.
He had to wait three years for his next. In 2012, Djokovic defeated Roger Federer to deny the Swiss legend a hat-trick of Tour Finals triumphs. Ironically, this would kickstart a streak of Djokovic’s own. He won four ATP Finals on the trot, a record for the most consecutive titles won.
In 2013, the Serb bested another Big 3 rival, Rafael Nadal. The year after, Djokovic lifted the trophy without having to play the final. Federer pulled out after the semi-final citing an injury, completing the hat-trick for the defending champion. He added another to the streak for good measure. Once again pitted against Federer, Djokovic beat the 20-time Majors winner in the 2014 ATP Finals final.
After being denied twice later on, Djokovic had to wait until 2022 for his record-equaling sixth title. Extending his dominance to the ‘new-gen’, he downed Casper Ruud in the final last year. Will Djokovic add Jannik Sinner to his list of victims and bag that record seventh title? Or will the Italian become the third person to beat the defending champion in a final? Click here to find out the prediction from The SportsRush.
