Novak Djokovic set up a semi-final showdown with Rafael Nadal at the ATP World Tour Finals after a 6-3 7-5 win over Tomas Berdych at The O2.
The world No 1 still needed to gain a set from his closing group match to qualify after the defeat by Roger Federer on Tuesday and was not at his best against Berdych, conceding two breaks before he booked his place in the last four.
Berdych held a wretched record against the Serb ahead of the game, with only two wins from their previous 22 encounters, and he somehow needed to construct a straight sets win to seize second place from Djokovic in the Stan Smith group.
This daunting task appeared even more unlikely when the tense Czech was broken in his opening service game, but he made a spirited response and Djokovic handed an instant break back with uncharacteristic errors.
Berdych displayed his appetite for battle while fending off three more break points with his thunderous serve and Djokovic even offered applause after a fizzing forehand from his world No 6 opponent.
But the Serb so often strikes at the key moment and he snatched a break to move 5-3 up, while a wayward forehand ended Berdych's bid to continue the set - and his participation in the eight-man tournament.
When Berdych's serve was breached again at the start of the second set it appeared that Djokovic would stroll to the semis, but he was briefly stopped in his tracks as a booming forehand earned a break back for his defiant foe.
Unloading ground strokes with reckless abandon, Berdych ruffled the dominant ruler of the men's game and a drop volley briefly kissed the top of the net chord before dropping on Djokovic's side of the net.
It could not last and the reigning champion displayed his ruthless side again while breaking for a 6-5 lead and clinically served out the win.
No comments:
Post a Comment