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Novak Djokovic
Photo: GUGLIELMO MANGIAPANE / REUTERS
Top favorite Novak Djokovic has taken the first step to the hoped-for next major tennis title.
At the Turin premiere of the ATP season finals, the Serbian world number one won his first round game against the Norwegian Casper Ruud 7: 6 (7: 4), 6: 2 on Monday.
Djokovic is aiming for the sixth title in the year-end tournament of the eight best tennis professionals of the season and would thus draw level with record holder Roger Federer.
The last time the 34-year-old triumphed at the ATP Finals in 2015.
After his success over Ruud, Djokovic was honored with a trophy for finishing the year as number one again. He has already done this for the seventh time - more often than anyone before. "That feels amazing," he said. He feels blessed to have achieved this once more than his childhood idol, the American Pete Sampras.
The game against Ruud started curiously: Djokovic slipped away in the first game, lost the racket, got up again, grabbed his racket and immediately played the ball again. The top seed lost the point anyway - and the twelve years younger Norwegian was promptly ahead with a break.
"To be honest, I don't know what happened in breakball in the first game," said Djokovic: "It was a terrible start." The 20-time Grand Slam champion equalized at 3: 3 and secured the first set in Tie-break.
Only then did the Serb begin to dominate the match.
Ruud was the first Norwegian to qualify for the ATP Finals.
This season, the 22-year-old not only rose to the top ten in the world, but also celebrated five tournament victories.
So many otherwise only brought Djokovic and Alexander Zverev in 2021.
In the best case, the Hamburger could reach the semifinals of the last tournament of the year on Tuesday.
But the world number three has to end his series of defeats against the Russian US Open winner Daniil Medvedev in any case.
Zverev won his first group game early on Sunday because Italian Matteo Berrettini gave up injured at the beginning of the second set.
The first two of the two preliminary round groups advance.
ara / dpa