Is Novak Djokovic a man of records or a man of competition? Lots of both. At 36 years old, the Serbian did not tremble, Sunday November 19, in the final of the Masters, in Turin (Italy), to gain the upper hand against the young Italian Jannik Sinner (6-3, 6-3). Still not satisfied, the world number 1 erases a new record, which he shared until now with the Swiss Roger Federer: that of the number of victories at the Masters (seven), a prestigious end-of-year competition bringing together the eight best players in the season.
Guaranteed to finish world number 1 for the eighth time in his career – another record – Novak Djokovic is closing out an exceptional 2023 from an accounting perspective. Winner of his 10th Australian Open in January, his 23rd then 24th Grand Slam titles at Roland Garros in May then at the US Open in September, the Serbian became the only male record holder for titles in major tournaments. “It’s the best season of my career”rejoiced Djokovic, Sunday after the final, savoring a “special record”. “ To beat Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, the two best players in the world behind me, in the same tournament is phenomenal. »
Heckled by a public committed to the cause of his opponent, regional of the stage, Novak Djokovic once again applied, on Sunday, his recipe, which has proven itself: relentless realism in important moments, a lethal serve (13 aces) and constant pressure on Jannik Sinner. Taken by surprise on each ball, the slender Italian (1.88 meters), as if physically borrowed, was too often clumsy, suffering from the accelerations of the Serb, winner of his 98th career tournament.
Davis Cup goal
Jannik Sinner, qualified for the first time in his career at this annual meeting – in November 2019, the Transalpine won the Next Gen Masters reserved for under-21s – nevertheless seemed to have a real chance of upsetting Novak Djokovic. Impressive since the start of the tournament, eliminating the Russian Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals, the native of San Candido (Trentino-Alto Adige, northeast of Italy) had the upper hand over the Serb during their confrontation in the “green group” (7-5, 6-7, 7-6).
But, with Novak Djokovic, the truth of yesterday is not that of today. “I played differently today than I did in a group”, he recalled after the meeting. In the final, Jannik Sinner suddenly looked his age. The Italian’s only regret? Having played the game during his last group match against the Norwegian Holger Rune – in the event of the latter’s success, Djokovic would have been eliminated from the masters tournament and would not have been able to play in this final.
Monday, November 20, the insatiable “Djoker” will begin a 400th week on the world throne. A final objective awaits the Serbian this season: the Davis Cup, organized from November 21 to 26 in Malaga, with the quarter-finals against Great Britain. Thirsty for victories, Novak Djokovic continues to add his name to the pantheon of tennis; and the successive records he accumulates will, to say the least, be difficult to improve.