"I was very eager to get that monkey off my back" - Novak Djokovic on beating out Carlos Alcaraz to secure record 8th year-end World No. 1 ranking
Novak Djokovic further cemented his place in tennis history by clinching his record-extending eighth year-end World No. 1 ranking after defeating Holger Rune at the 2023 ATP Finals.
Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz were engaged in a riveting battle for the year-end No. 1 finish, with the Serb gaining a substantial edge after his recent Paris Masters triumph.
With a significant gap between them heading into the ATP Finals, Alcaraz had to win the entire tournament to claim his second consecutive year-end World No. 1 ranking. On the other hand, Djokovic only needed one win to secure the top spot.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion achieved the milestone in his tournament opener itself, edging past Rune 7-6(4), 6-7(1), 6-3 in a three-hour long thriller. With his win, the Serb also guaranteed himself a 400th week as the world's top-ranked player, making him the first player in history to accomplish this feat.
Djokovic, who has made no secret about his ambition to clinch the year-end No. 1 finish, expressed satisfaction and relief at achieving the feat, describing it as a weight off his shoulders.
"It means a lot obviously. You could see that there were a lot of emotions on the court. As I said the previous answer, I could feel it. I was very eager to win tonight's match, get that, so to say, monkey off my back," he said in his post-match interview.
"You know, I won Paris which put me in a much better position rankings-wise and I knew that coming into Torino all I have to do is win one match so you know. Obviously a big objective, a big goal is achieved, everything else now is a bonus," he added.
Novak Djokovic: "It was a very emotional win and a tough win knowing the significance of tonight's match"
Novak Djokovic commenced his ATP Finals campaign with a narrow victory over Holger Rune. Following the match, the World No. 1 shared his thoughts on the closely-contested battle and hailed the Dane's high level of play.
"It took everything. I saw in the first game, when he fired shots from the baseline in the firsdt three or four points, I knew that it was going to be a tough night for me. If I wanted to win this match, I was going to have to work really hard," he said.
"I thought he played great. I played great in some moments. He was feeling the ball well, he was sharp. Very aggressive, every short ball he was coming in and he served terrific," he added.
Djokovic conveyed contentment with his victory, especially highlighting his comeback in the third set following a subpar performance in the second-set tiebreak. He also acknowledged the emotional significance of the win in terms of securing the year-end World No. 1 ranking.
"Overall a win is a win. It was a very emotional win and a tough win knowing the significance of tonight's match, obviously knowing that if I won I was going to clinch the year-end No. 1. So that was added pressure and tension, but after a terrible second-set tie-break I think I played a really solid deciding set," he said.