Tag: Novak Djokovic

LONDON: Tennis legend Novak Djokovic is a week away from another milestone after equalling Steffi Graf’s all-time record for most weeks spent at number one of 377.

The 35-year-old Serbian remains top of the latest ATP rankings released on Monday bringing him level with the amount of weeks that Graf spent as women’s world number one.

Djokovic returned to number one spot for a seventh time after his victory in the Australian Open at the end of January which was a record equalling 22nd Grand Slam singles title.

Two former world number ones enjoyed success at the weekend — Daniil Medvedev claiming the Rotterdam title and Carlos Alcaraz making a winning return to the circuit in Argentina.

Medvedev’s three set victory — his 16th career title — over Italian Jannik Sinner sees him return to the top 10 — he rises three spots to eighth.

The losing finalist’s consolation is a climb of two places to 12th in the rankings.

Alcaraz’s successful return to the tour, after almost four months out, in landing the Argentina Open on Sunday sees him solidify his second place in the rankings.

Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas — whom Djokovic beat in the Australian Open final — rounds off the top three.

Germany’s former world number two Alexander Zverev arrested a decline in his ranking since his comeback after tearing ankle ligaments during last year’s French Open which kept him out of action for the remainder of the year.

The 25-year-old, who also revealed after exiting the Australian Open in the second round he had type 1 diabetes since the age of three, rose one place to 16th after reaching the second round in Rotterdam.

Rankings

1. Novak Djokovic (SRB) 7070 pts
2. Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) 6480
3. Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) 5940
4. Casper Ruud (NOR) 5515
5. Andrey Rublev 3860
6. Rafael Nadal (ESP) 3815
7. Taylor Fritz (USA) 3660
8. Daniil Medvedev 3250
9. Felix Auger-Aliassime (CAN) 3200
10. Holger Rune (DEN) 3161

LONDON: Novak Djokovic reclaimed the top spot in the ATP rankings released on Monday after winning his 22nd Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.

The 35-year-old Serbian rose four places to dislodge Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, who missed the tournament through injury and dropped to second.

Djokovic’s 10th Australian Open title means he is world number one for the 374th week since July 2011.

Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas, who lost to Djokovic in straight sets in Sunday’s final in Melbourne, overtook Norwegian Casper Ruud in third place, matching a career-best ranking he first achieved in August 2021.

Andrey Rublev of Russia, dominated by Djokovic in the quarter-finals, climbed to a career-best position of fifth.

The shock elimination of Djokovic’s long-time rival Rafael Nadal in the second round saw the Spaniard drop four places to sixth.

Karen Khachanov’s run to the semi-finals in Melbourne propelled the Russian up seven places to 13th.

Tommy Paul of the United States, who also reached the final four, broke into the top 20 for the first time as he soared up the rankings by 16 places to 19th.

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MELBOURNE: An emotional Novak Djokovic beat Stefanos Tsitsipas Sunday to claim a 10th Australian Open title and equal Rafael Nadal’s 22 Grand Slam crowns, a victory that returned him to world number one.

The Serbian star overcame a hamstring injury and off-court drama on his return to Melbourne Park to sweep past the Greek third seed 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/5) on Rod Laver Arena.

He surged to victory without father Srdjan in the stands after he sparked controversy by posing with a fan carrying a Russian flag featuring Vladimir Putin’s face following his son’s quarter-final win.

Djokovic climbed to his player’s box after the win to embrace his mother and broke down in uncontrollable tears, collapsing to the ground sobbing.

It capped a remarkable comeback by the 35-year-old fourth seed, who missed last year’s tournament when he was deported over his Covid vaccination stance.

After a three-year ban from Australia was lifted, Djokovic won the lead-up Adelaide International before reinforcing his stature as an all-time great in Melbourne.

The emphatic win drew him level with Nadal on a record 22 Slams, two clear of Roger Federer.

The Spanish great made a shock second-round exit with a hip injury, but is targeting a return for the clay-court season and another crack at the French Open, and with it a 23rd Slam title.

Nadal, though, is set to slide down the rankings when they are released on Monday, in contrast to Djokovic, who will dethrone Spanish teenager Carlos Alcaraz and return to the top for the first time since June. Tsitsipas will climb one place to three.

Both men were back on a court that helped them rise to stardom.

Djokovic won his first Grand Slam in 2008 on Rod Laver Arena while Tsitsipas burst on the scene in 2019 when he stunned defending champion Federer in the last 16.

With sizeable Greek and Serbian communities in Melbourne, and Rod Laver in attendance, there was a raucous atmosphere.

Djokovic came into the match with his confidence high having won all nine of his previous Australian Open finals and with a 10-2 career advantage over the Greek.

Moving freely with only minimal strapping on his troublesome left hamstring, he opened with a comfortable hold after being greeted by huge cheers.

Djokovic worked two break points on Tsitsipas’s opening serve, to no avail, but kept probing and the Greek handed him a break for 3-1 with a careless double fault.

Tsitsipas, in only his second Grand Slam final to Djokovic’s 33rd, appeared nervous, losing the first set in just 36 minutes.

But he battled back into contention in a much closer second set as his confidence grew, improving his serve and winning some pressure points.

He earned his first break point — and set point — when Djokovic blasted a backhand wide.

But the Serb clung on to keep the set on serve and it went to a tiebreak, where his greater experience came to the fore.

Against the odds, Tsitsipas broke for the first time on Djokovic’s opening serve in set three, only to relinquish the advantage immediately after a gripping rally, furious with himself.

It again went to a tiebreak, where Djokovic once again raised a level to claim another title.

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MELBOURNE: A rampant Novak Djokovic surged into a 10th Australian Open final Friday to close in on a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam crown, with only Stefanos Tsitsipas now standing in his way.

The Serbian fourth seed overcame an early wobble to romp past unseeded American Tommy Paul 7-5, 6-1, 6-2 on Rod Laver Arena in style.

Another title on Sunday will move him alongside Rafael Nadal with 22 Slam wins and see the 35-year-old return to world number one for the first time since last June.

Greek third seed Tsitsipas, who ground past Russian 18th seed Karen Khachanov 7-6 (7/2), 6-4, 6-7 (6/8), 6-3 in the other semi-final, can also become the top-ranked player should he lift the trophy.

Djokovic played the clash without father Srdjan courtside after he was filmed posing with a man holding a Russian flag featuring Vladimir Putin’s face following his son’s quarter-final win on Wednesday.

The incident sparked a backlash from Ukraine and led to calls for Djokovic’s father to be banned from the tournament.

Srdjan issued a statement ahead of the semi-final saying he would stay away, insisting he “wishes only for peace” and never wanted to cause “disruption”.

There was an empty seat next to his mother Dijana during the match.

“I’m really thankful that I have enough gas in my legs to be able to play at this level on one of the biggest tennis courts in the world,” said Djokovic, who is now 11-0 for the season and into a 33rd Grand Slam final.

“Of course, I’m not as fresh as the beginning of the tournament but we put in a lot of hours in the off-season on fitness in order to be in a good condition to play best of five (sets).

“I know what’s expected of me, I’ve been in this situation so many times in my career. Experience helps also,” he added of being in another final.

The win extended his unbeaten streak at the Australian Open to 27 matches to claim sole ownership of the Open-era record at Melbourne Park ahead of Andre Agassi.

Djokovic had never played Paul before and said he was wary of a “very explosive, very dynamic player”, with the American initially refusing to go quietly.

The Serb, a hot favourite, attacked his opponent’s straight away for an early break, then broke again when the 35th-ranked Paul fired a forehand long to race 5-1 in front.

A run-in with the umpire over using his towel between points seemed to rattle Djokovic and he was broken twice in a row as Paul came surging back to 5-5.

Djokovic regrouped to hold serve and break again and take the set in 59 minutes.

After that wobble, it was all business, despite clutching his strapped hamstring several times, romping through the next two sets with minimal resistence.

He will meet Tsitsipas next after the Greek battled into his first Australian final and only second at a Grand Slam.

In the previous one, at Roland Garros in 2021, he fell to Djokovic in five sets after holding a 2-0 lead.

At 24, Tsitsipas is the youngest man to reach the Melbourne final since a 23-year-old Djokovic in 2011.

“I dreamed as a kid to maybe one day get to play in this court against the best players in the world,” said Tsitsipas, who is also unbeaten this season with a 10-0 record.

“I’m extremely happy that I’m in the final now and let’s see what happens.”

Tsitsipas has thrived in Melbourne throughout his career after bursting on the scene at the 2019 event as a 20-year-old when he dethroned defending champion Roger Federer in the last 16.

He went on to reach the semi-finals that year and again in 2021 and 2022.

He came into his clash with Khachanov brimming with confidence.

Despite failing to get over the line when serving for the match at 5-4 in the third set, then with two match points in the tiebreak, he kept his cool to secure the win and a date with Djokovic.

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MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovic was two wins away from a 22nd Grand Slam crown after bulldozing into the Australian Open semi-finals on Wednesday, while Aryna Sabalenka was equally impressive in reaching the women’s last four.

Serbia’s Djokovic delivered a masterclass to crush Russian fifth seed Andrey Rublev 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 on Rod Laver Arena and set up a meeting with Tommy Paul for a place in Sunday’s final.

Djokovic’s quest to go level with great rival Rafael Nadal on a leading 22 major titles carries an air of inevitability.

The 35-year-old struggled with a hamstring injury in the early rounds at Melbourne Park but was dominant during his fourth-round demolition of Alex de Minaur and was equally clinical against the outclassed Rublev.

“Last two matches, playing against two guys who were in form and to beat them dominantly in three sets is something that I definitely want in this moment, something that sends a message to all my opponents,” said a buoyant Djokovic.

“With this kind of game the confidence level rises, so I feel better on the court as the tournament progresses.”

Victory for the red-hot favourite propelled him into a 44th Grand Slam semi-final to close the gap on Roger Federer’s all-time record of 46.

Anything other than a rampant win for Djokovic against unseeded Paul would amount to a massive upset, albeit at a tournament that has seen numerous shocks in the men’s and women’s draws.

Paul defeated his fellow American Ben Shelton 7-6 (8/6), 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 to reach his first major semi-final.

But former world number one Djokovic, who can return to the top of the rankings if he wins the Australian Open for a record-extending 10th time, will be a whole new prospect.

Paul, ranked 35, and the Serb great have never played each other before.

“I saw him in the locker room after I finished my match. He said, ‘congrats’,” said the 25-year-old, adding they had practised together before.

“Obviously he’s pretty comfortable here in Australia,” the American added. “It’s going to be a challenging match but I’m playing some of my best tennis, so it’s a good time.”

The other semi-final is between third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas and Russian 18th seed Karen Khachanov.

MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovic scrapped his way into the Australian Open third round Thursday to ramp up his bid for a 22nd Grand Slam crown, but Ons Jabeur was prime among the numerous seeds to crash out.

Most of the carnage occurred in the men’s draw — second seed Casper Ruud, Taylor Fritz, Alexander Zverev and Diego Schwartzman were all sent packing on day four at Melbourne Park.

With the shock exit on Wednesday of hobbling defending champion Rafael Nadal, the top two seeds are both now gone.

With top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz also absent through injury, it presents a huge opportunity for Djokovic, who even before that was hot favourite to win a 10th Melbourne crown.

The 35-year-old Serb required a medical timeout and had heavy strapping on his left thigh against 191st-ranked qualifier Enzo Couacaud.

He was also bothered by some rowdy fans and at one point during the match demanded that a drunken fan be thrown out.

But Djokovic recovered his poise and fitness to beat the Frenchman 6-1, 6-7 (5/7), 6-2, 6-0, and faces 27th seed Grigor Dimitrov in round three.

“There was a lot happening tonight in the match,” Djokovic, who has been struggling with a hamstring injury, told the Rod Laver Arena.

His on-court interview was momentarily paused when a spectator shouted out.

“I love you too, thank you,” said Djokovic, who has enjoyed a warm return to Melbourne Park following his deportation a year ago because of his stance on Covid vaccines.

Fellow seeds Andrey Rublev, Dan Evans, Holger Rune and Roberto Bautista Agut all also won in the second round.

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MELBOURNE: Novak Djokovic was “a bit emotional” after receiving a warm welcome Friday on his return to Melbourne Park, before facing Nick Kyrgios in a sell-out Australian Open exhibition match.

All 15,000 seats at Rod Laver Arena sold out in 58 minutes, with proceeds going to charity, ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year on Monday.

Djokovic, who was deported a year ago, was given a good reception when he went on to win an Adelaide warm-up tournament last week and it was a similar story at Rod Laver Arena, where he is a nine-time champion.

“Thank you so much, feel a bit emotional right now to be honest,” the former world number one from Serbia told the crowd after his entrance on court was met by cheers and applause.

“I was really looking forward to coming back to this court, so thank you all you guys for coming out tonight for a great cause,” said the 35-year-old, one of the best men’s tennis players of all time.

Djokovic has dominated the Australian Open since his maiden triumph in 2008 but he had his visa cancelled 12 months ago and was deported on the eve of the tournament because of his stance on Covid vaccines.

In a light-hearted encounter against Australia’s Kyrgios, Djokovic wore tape for a left hamstring issue which saw him curtail a practice match against Daniil Medvedev this week.

But he appeared to have no trouble with his movement against Kyrgios and said beforehand that he was “feeling good”. Kyrgios also allayed concerns about an ankle injury which has hampered his preparations.

They each won one shortened set before concluding the friendly knockabout with a tiebreak that also included wheelchair players David Wagner and Heath Davidson.

Djokovic and temperamental showman Kyrgios used to have a frosty relationship.

But that has thawed considerably after Kyrgios became one of the few players to come out publicly and support Djokovic as he unsuccessfully fought deportation in January 2022.

They met in the Wimbledon final last year, with Djokovic winning in four sets for his 21st Grand Slam.

He is hot favourite to win the Melbourne title once again when he begins his campaign against 75th-ranked Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena.

“It’s great to be back in Melbourne, to be back in Australia,” Djokovic said.

“This is the court and the stadium where I created the best memories of my professional career.”

SYDNEY: Former world number one Novak Djokovic arrived in Australia on Tuesday almost one year after he was deported for refusing to be vaccinated against Covid-19, tennis officials said.

The nine-time Australian Open champion was initially banned from the country for three years after losing a high-stakes legal battle in January over his vaccine status.

Australia has since lifted its requirement for visitors to show proof of vaccination against Covid.

The government confirmed in November that the unvaccinated Serb was no longer barred and had been granted a visa allowing him to play in the opening Grand Slam of the year, which starts next month.

Tennis Australia chief executive Craig Tiley said he hoped local fans would embrace Djokovic’s return.

“We welcome him back to Australia,” he told reporters.

“I think as we speak he’s landing in Adelaide and I think that he is going to be again the player to beat.

“I have a great deal of confidence in the Australian public. I have a lot of confidence that the fans will react how we hope they will react.”

Tennis Australia confirmed that Djokovic had touched down.

Djokovic, who has won 21 Grand Slams, has been criticised for his part in the saga, which played out as rolling anti-vaccination protests took place in Australia’s major cities.

He is scheduled to play in the Adelaide International, beginning Sunday, as he warms up for the Open in Melbourne.

“Over the years I’ve been really fortunate to start very strong in Australia and I love playing there,” the world number five said in Dubai last week after ending 2022 with a record-equalling sixth ATP Tour Finals crown.

“After obviously what happened earlier this year, hopefully I can have a decent reception there and hopefully that can help me play some good tennis.”

Djokovic last set foot in Australia nearly a year ago, claiming he had obtained a medical exemption to enter the country without being vaccinated because he had recently recovered from Covid-19.

However, Australian border officials said he did not meet the requirements to be exempted from strict vaccination rules and he was detained for five days while pursuing an ultimately fruitless legal appeal.

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TURIN: Novak Djokovic claimed a sixth ATP Tour Finals title on Sunday with a 7-5, 6-3 victory over Norway’s Casper Ruud, to match Roger Federer’s record.

The 35-year-old Serb, the oldest player to win the Finals, ended in style after a season in which he missed two majors because of his vaccine status but also claimed his seventh Wimbledon title.

The win, which also brings a cheque for $4.7 million, came seven years after his last ATP Finals victory and will lift him from eighth to fifth in Monday’s new rankings.

“I made him run, made him play,” said Djokovic.

“I was really pleased with the way I played. I was looking to be very aggressive and it worked great. I am really pleased with the performance.”

Djokovic started strongly with two break points on his opponent’s first serve.

But the Norwegian held and at 2-1, the Serb began to struggle, raising fears of a repeat of the physical slump he experienced in his two previous matches against Daniil Medvedev and Taylor Fritz.

Djokovic, however, served superbly, not giving Ruud a single break point in the match. He recovered physically and made the all-important break at 5-6 to take the opening set.

The Serb took charge of the second set early on, breaking to open up a 3-1 lead. He served out the match with an ace to claim his sixth Finals crown.

“It is the Finals. Usually these kind of matches are decided by very small margins,” said Djokovic.

“One break of serve was enough in both sets. I knew Casper was playing really well coming into this match.

“We both served really well and I think in some decisive moments, like the 12th game of the first set, I managed to put a few returns back in play.”

It marked the end of an outstanding week for Djokovic who was given clearance to return to Melbourne for the Australian Open in January.

At the start of the year, he was detained and deported from Australia over his non-vaccinated status on Covid.

He was initially barred by the then-conservative government from returning to Australia until 2025 but Australia’s new Immigration Minister Andrew Giles said this week that with a significant easing in pandemic restrictions, the nine-time champion was now welcome to return.

Close Points

For the 23-year-old Ruud it was a third near-miss of the year. He also lost the finals of the French and US Opens.

“In the end it’s been disappointing to end up losing these big finals,” he said.

“Overall if you gave me an offer to end the year at No. 3, play the finals that I’ve played, at the first of January this year, I would probably sign the contract right away.”

“I’ve overachieved compared to my own mind, so I’m very happy about that.”

Ruud has never taken a set from either Djokovic or his French Open final conqueror Rafael Nadal.

“They have this sort of ability in them to step up when they really have to that I don’t have,” Ruud said. “They always seem to win the close points, the close sets.”

The American Rajeev Ram and Britain’s Joe Salisbury took the doubles title with a 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 win over the Croatian pair of Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic.

Ram and Salisbury lost in last year’s final to French pair Nicolas Mahut and Pierre-Hugues Herber.

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SYDNEY: Former world number one Novak Djokovic will be granted a visa to play in the 2023 Australian Open, local media reports said Tuesday, despite his deportation from the country ahead of this year’s tournament in January.

The Australian government had decided to grant the unvaccinated Serb a visa for the Grand Slam contest, overturning a three-year ban after his ejection from the country, said national broadcaster ABC and other domestic media.

Australia’s immigration ministry and Tennis Australia were asked by AFP to comment on the reports.

This year’s championship was overshadowed by nine-time Australian Open champion Djokovic being put on a plane on the eve of the contest after a high-stakes legal battle over his visa status.

Djokovic’s three-year ban can be overturned at the discretion of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s centre-left government, which is different to the conservative coalition in power when he was kicked out.

Over the past month there have been hints that the Australian government might have a change of heart.

“Nothing official yet,” Djokovic told reporters after winning his opening match at the ATP Finals in Turin on Monday night.

“We are waiting. They are communicating with the government of Australia. That’s all I can tell you for now,”

Last month, Australian Open chief Craig Tiley said he had spent time with Djokovic recently and the Serbian wanted to return for the first major of the year in January in Melbourne.

“What we’re saying at this point is that Novak and the federal government need to work out the situation. And then we’ll follow any instruction after that,” Tiley told The Age newspaper at the tournament’s official launch.

“I did spend some time with Novak at the Laver Cup. We spoke generally. He said that he’d obviously love to come back to Australia but he knows it’s going to be an ultimate decision for the federal government.

“He’s accepted that position. It’s a private matter between them.”

Opposition politician Karen Andrews, who was home affairs minister when Djokovic was deported, argued that he should not be given special treatment.

“It would be a slap in the face for those people in Australia who did the right thing, got vaccinated, did everything they needed to do, if all of a sudden Novak Djokovic is allowed back into the country simply because he is a high-ranking tennis player with many millions of dollars,” she told ABC radio last month.

Djokovic arrived in Melbourne in January for the first Grand Slam of the year claiming he had obtained a medical exemption to enter the country without being vaccinated as he had recently recovered from Covid-19.

But Australian border officials said he did not meet requirements to be exempted from strict vaccination rules, his visa was cancelled and a protracted legal appeal failed.

Australia has since lifted its requirement for visitors to show proof of vaccination against Covid.

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