ATP World Tour Finals 2021: 3 stand-out factors in Novak Djokovic's win over Andrey Rublev
World no. 1 Novak Djokovic defeated Andrey Rublev, ranked fifth in the world 6-3, 6-2 in a round robin match in the Green group of the ATP Tour Finals in Turin today. The match took a little more than an hour to get completed. The victory saw Djokovic qualify for his 10th career semifinal of the ATP Tour Finals.
Not a bad gift from the World No. 1 👏
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The Russian could not put up a strong resistance and the Serbian yet again displayed his class. The result today means that Djokovic and Medvedev, the defending champion, are not likely to meet in the semi-finals.
On that note, we would like to take a look at the three factors which stood out in today’s match:
#1. Djokovic served well today, but Rublev could not:
The influence of Goran Ivanisevic, Djokovic’s coach and a big server himself in his heyday, is quite evident on the Serbian’s game now. Djokovic’s serve has improved a lot in the past year. He demonstrated his serving prowess again today by hitting 14 aces, including four in his last two service games.
His first serve ratio was also a healthy 65% and on a fast court, Rublev simply could not break his opponent’s serve. The Russian did manage to get a few break points, but could not convert them. Djokovic’s ability to raise his game a few notches in key moments won the match for him.
Rublev, on the other hand, had a first serve ratio of 54%, a good 11% less than his opponent. The Russian also got broken twice in each set, and simply did not serve well enough against the one of the greatest returners of all time.
#2. Rublev made too many unforced errors:
Rublev committed too many errors against the world No. 1 and did not give himself any chance of causing an upset. He committed 25 unforced errors in a two-set match and often struggled to lengthen the rallies.
On a fast court, Rublev did not go for point construction and tried to hit through Djokovic. However, that strategy backfired and he often hit the ball to the net or wide of the court. Rublev had a number of backhand crosscourt exchanges with the Serb, but he missed the subsequent inside-out forehand.
Rublev was too dependent on his strong forehand to win points, but was not accurate enough with the shot. There were some flashes of brilliance -- for instance, the lightning-fast return winner that he played to punish a Djokovic second serve in the final set. However, they were too few and far between.
#3. Djokovic showed his flexibility and strong defense against the one-dimensional Russian:
Rublev went for broke in most of the points in today’s match. As a result, there were only 8 points which saw 9 or more shots being played. Quite unsurprisingly, Djokovic won 6 of those points. The Serb’s defense was superb as usual under fast conditions, as he kept stretching himself with enviable flexibility to reach the ball repeatedly.
Just look at court coverage 🥲
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Rublev, on the other hand, was one-dimensional in his approach, and did not try to play backhand slices to alter the speed of the rally. He hardly rushed to the net to surprise his opponent. Djokovic, on the other hand, went to the net a few times and succeeded in dispatching the subsequent volley past his opponent.
In the end, it was a comprehensive win for the 34-year old Djokovic.