Novak Djokovic won a sixth China Open title with a straight sets victory over Rafa Nadal on Sunday.
The world No 1 continued his stranglehold over the Chinese event by winning his 29th consecutive match and his 25th set in a row with a 6-2 6-2 win.
The Beijing final added another intriguing chapter to Djokovic and Nadal's history ahead of the World Tour Finals in London - this was their 45th career meeting, an Open era record, with the Serb trailing 23-22 overall.
Much of the opening set, despite the scoreline, harked back to Nadal's Grand Slam-winning past as he went toe-to-toe with Djokovic and often looked far superior to his world No 8 ranking.
Yet, he trailed by a break from the very first game. The opening point was worthy of a Slam final, then Djokovic hit the line with an inch-perfect shot.
Nadal signalled his intention to compete with his next serve, holding for the first time, before firing a brilliant winner as Djokovic held his next service game. The Spaniard upped the ante, pinning the Serb behind his base-line and peppering him, winning his service game by hammering the ball past Djokovic when he was in 'No Man's Land' at the net.
Nadal opened two break points but hesitancy saw them vanish - the crucial moments that ultimately cost him the first set. When the roles were reversed in the following game, the Spaniard blinked first again to give away his serve and, as a result, the set.
When they resumed, Nadal suffered a foot injury that warranted a medical time-out and had not fully recovered when Djokovic pounced all over him, earning a break ruthlessly.
From there, the writing was on the wall as the sport's best player clamped down on proceedings. He broke for a second time to go 4-1 up, with the help of a masterful lob, as Nadal visibly wilted.
Djokovic held off a brief resistance to confirm a sixth title in Beijing after an hour and a half's play.
Djokovic hit 23 winners and conceded just seven to Nadal, and won 70 per cent of his first-serve points to his opponent's 56 per cent.
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