Novak Djokovic continued his unbeaten start to the 2020 ATP Tour season on Saturday, beating Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 to claim his fifth Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships title.

One day after saving three consecutive match points to beat Gael Monfils in a dramatic semi-final, Djokovic raised his level and converted each of his three break points to win his 21st straight match. Djokovic has won each of the 18 encounters he has contested this season, winning 43 of 49 sets.

Novak Djokovic’s 20+ Match Win Streaks

“I’m trying to embrace the moment and appreciate where I am,” said Djokovic. “I think this has been one of the best starts of all the seasons I had in my career. I feel great on the court. I’ve been playing great tennis on the hard courts. That is my most successful and preferred surface.

“I’m just grateful that I’m playing well, feeling well. I’ve won many matches now in a row. I’ll try to keep that run going. It’s just way too early to speak about how long that run might go, the calculations. I try not to think about predictions. I try to focus on what I need to do with myself and my team in order to thrive every day, in order to try to play as best as I can every single match. That’s the main focus.”

Djokovic continues to impress in 2020, having also lifted the inaugural ATP Cup with Team Serbia and a record-extending eighth Australian Open title last month. With his first Dubai trophy since 2013, Djokovic improves to 5-1 in finals at the ATP 500 event. Only Roger Federer, in 2015, has beaten the World No. 1 in a Dubai final.

This is the first time that a No. 1 seed has beaten a No. 2 seed at this tournament. In each of the previous four contests between the event’s Top 2 seeds, the second seed has lifted the trophy.

Top 2 Seeds In Dubai Final

In a first set largely dominated by serve, Djokovic attacked Tsitsipas’ backhand with deep returns to earn his first break point at 4-3. The 32-year-old was forced to defend as Tsitsipas attacked with an aggressive inside-out forehand approach, but Djokovic ripped a flat cross-court backhand passing shot to take a 5-3 lead. Djokovic converted his first set point with a backhand winner down the line.

After trading breaks early in the second set, Djokovic once again earned a late service break. With Tsitsipas serving at 4-4, the 17-time Grand Slam champion extracted forehand errors from the Greek to earn two break points. Djokovic played with depth and aggression in an extended rally on his first opportunity, before changing the rhythm with a cross-court drop shot to move to within one game of his 79th tour-level crown. As he did when serving for the first set, Djokovic held serve comfortably with another backhand winner down the line.

“I felt mentally I started having a little bit more of an advantage on the court [after breaking at 4-3]. You could sense that I got the momentum. I didn’t want to lose the momentum,” said Djokovic.

“I was a break up in the second set. He [broke back] right away. I was comfortable from the back of the court playing with him. It seems like he did drop his intensity a little bit from the previous matches… I served out the match in a great fashion, won another trophy here. I’m just obviously very, very pleased.”

Tsitsipas was attempting to capture his first Dubai title in his second straight final at the tournament. The Marseille champion, who entered this year’s final on an eight-match winning streak, fell to Roger Federer in last year’s championship match.

“It’s disappointing trying so hard and not really getting the final result that you want,” said Tsitsipas. “For sure, I would love to see myself holding that trophy. Of course, he gave more than me and he deserves it.”

Djokovic receives 500 FedEx ATP Ranking points and earns $565,705 in prize money. Tsitsipas gains 300 ATP Ranking points and collects $284,485.

In their fourth event as a pairing, John Peers and Michael Venus lifted their first team trophy at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships on Saturday.

Peers and Venus needed just 59 minutes to overcome fourth seeds Raven Klaasen and Oliver Marach 6-3, 6-2 saving both break points they faced in the championship match. The unseeded tandem did not drop a set en route to the trophy, which included a 6-4, 6-2 quarter-final victory against defending champions Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury.

“[There is] a lot of excitement. I mean, we worked hard the past few months to try to play at this level for a whole tournament. It was really good and pleasing we were able to do that together,” said Peers.

“I know we’ll take a lot of confidence with that moving forward, take a look at the areas we need to keep working on. We have got to keep improving.”

This is Peers’ 21st tour-level trophy. The Australian has won at least one trophy for eight consecutive years, dating back to his maiden ATP Tour title in Houston in 2013.

Venus adds an 11th tour-level crown to his collection. The 32-year-old has lifted a trophy in each of the six seasons since his first title run in Nice in 2015.

“[With] any new partnership, you don’t know how it’s going to go till you get out there really, until you get on the court and you start to understand exactly what your partner likes to see in certain situations, how they react to things and that, it takes time to figure those things out,” said Venus.

“We really spent probably the past two or three weeks sitting down, trying to go over it to try to have a better understanding. I think that really helped us.”

Klaasen and Marach were also attempting to capture their first title in their fourth event as a duo. The fourth seeds own a 6-4 record this year.

Peers and Venus gain 500 FedEx ATP Doubles Ranking points and share $181,360 in prize money. Klaasen and Marach earn 300 points and split $88,780.

Midway through his Friday semi-final with John Isner at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel por HSBC, Taylor Fritz was simply hoping for a respectable scoreline. He earned far more than that, rallying from a set and 2-4, 0/40 down to stun the fifth seed 2-6, 7-5, 6-3 and reach his first ATP 500 final in Acapulco.

“It’s huge for me. One of my biggest goals this year was to do well in the bigger tournaments,” Fritz said. “I hope that I can keep the momentum going for the rest of the year.”

Fritz’s outstanding turnaround puts him into his fifth ATP Tour final (1-3). The 22-year-old is also projected to reach a new career-high FedEx ATP Ranking of No. 24 on Monday.

He joined 2017 champion Sam Querrey as the only Americans to reach the final in Acapulco. Fritz tied his ATP Head2Head series with Isner at 2-2 and has won their past two matches.

Awaiting him on Saturday is the winner of the other semi-final featuring top-seeded Spaniard Rafael Nadal and seventh-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov. Fritz has never played Nadal and defeated Dimitrov in their lone ATP Head2Head meeting last year in Madrid.

“I would love to win my first ATP 500 title,” Fritz said. “I’m definitely going to have a tough opponent, so I’ll just have to be at my best.”

Fritz started slowly as Isner came out swinging from the first ball. Striking his returns within inches of the baseline, the fifth seed broke Fritz in the opening game with an overhead smash, then scored an insurance break two games later with a backhand return winner. Isner finished the opening set with 15 winners to seven errors.

It appeared that Isner would run through the match after breaking Fritz to love for a 3-2 lead in the second set and holding triple break point at 4-2. But the 22-year-old managed to hold serve and adjusted his tactics, finding a way to put more of Isner’s booming serves into play.

Fritz finally earned a pair of break points with Isner serving at 4-3 and tied the set score after the fifth seed hit a forehand into the net. Three games later, the young American ripped a backhand passing shot to earn two set points. He completed the staggering reversal and set up a decider after Isner flicked a backhand volley wide.

Perhaps miffed at dropping the momentum, a frustrated Isner dropped his opening service game in the final set with a double fault. The slight advantage was all Fritz needed and he maintained the lead to prevail after one hour and 41 minutes. He finished the night with 28 winners to 14 unforced errors and served more aces than Isner (15 to 13).

Fifteen years after capturing his first title at the Abierto Mexicano Telcel presentado por HSBC, Rafael Nadal is in position to once again wear the winner’s sombrero in Acapulco. The top-seeded Spaniard booked his place in the final with a convincing 6-3, 6-2 victory on Friday against seventh-seeded Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov.

“I’m very happy. A great victory against one of the best players in the world and a good friend,” Nadal said. “I think I’ve increased my level during the match, so it’s positive for me.”

The two-time champion (2005, 2013) improved to 18-2 at this event and remained flawless (4-0) in Acapulco semi-finals. He also continued his dominance over Dimitrov (13-1) in their ATP Head2Head series. Nadal has yet to lose a set this week and only dropped 20 games across his first four matches.

Nadal’s return of serve has been particularly dangerous. The Spaniard leads the tournament in return games won (58%, 19 of 33) and converted 19 of 28 break points (68%).

Standing between him and an Acapulco hat trick is Taylor Fritz, who defeated fifth seed John Isner in an all-American semi-final. This will be the first ATP Head2Head meeting between Nadal and Fritz.

“He’s playing well. He has a great serve, fantastic shots from the baseline. It’s going to be a tough one,” Nadal said. “I know I’m going to have to be at my best and I hope to be ready for it.”

Dimitrov had overcome plenty of barriers to reach his semi-final showdown with Nadal. The Bulgarian saved two match points to defeat Frenchman Adrian Mannarino in the second round, then snapped a five-match losing streak against third-seeded Swiss Stan Wawrinka in the quarter-finals.

Breaking another five-match losing streak against Nadal would be an even taller order. The Spaniard successfully targeted Dimitrov’s backhand with depth and heavy topspin in their previous matches, breaking down that normally reliable wing before applying further pressure with his forehand.

Both players traded early service holds to start their latest clash. But while Nadal got off to a slow start, he quickly rounded into form. From 1-2 in the opening set, Nadal went on a four-game run with a stream of blistering baseline winners. 

Although Dimitrov kept the games close, he didn’t have much to show for it on the scoreboard. He let slip two game points on his serve at 2-3 before handing Nadal a break with a forehand error, then squandered three break points in the next game. A big down-the-line forehand from the Spaniard on set point gave him the early advantage.

The second set progressed nearly identically to the first set, with Dimitrov breaking early for a 2-0 lead before Nadal found his footing. Standing on top of the baseline and pouncing with his forehand, Nadal finished out the night by going on a six-game run. The top seed crunched a final forehand winner to end play after one hour and 44 minutes.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic and reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas will clash on Saturday in a dream final at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

The two stars have only played four times in their ATP Head2Head series, but each of those meetings have come at an ATP Masters 1000 event, and their battle in Dubai will give either 32-year-old Djokovic or 21-year-old Tsitsipas a 3-2 lead in what is a budding rivalry.

“He’s one of the leaders of the new generation. He’s now established [as a] Top 5, Top 10 player of the world. He is a hard worker, dedicated, very charismatic guy, nice guy. He has a lot of talent, a lot of passion for the sport, for the game,” said Djokovic, who carries a 17-0 record in 2020 into the championship match. “I think he’s fantastic for our sport, not just the way he plays but his charisma, his character, the way he behaves. He’s a really nice guy to have for tennis. It’s anybody’s game really.” 

Tsitsipas, who is on an eight-match winning streak, is trying to become the third active player (Kyrgios, Karlovic) and the sixth overall to own a winning record against Djokovic. The Greek, who leads the tournament in service games won (41/43, 95%), revealed the mentality he brings into his matches against the Serbian, who leads this ATP 500 in return games won (17/37, 46%).

“I just respect him a lot. I come in knowing that it’s not your regular guy. You just have to give more than usual. My attention span has to be there,” Tsitsipas said. “I can see the bright side of having a positive record. I’m going to try and stay humble. I’m doing well. I’m doing my job correctly. I should continue everything the way I do it. It’s great having a positive record against Novak. I don’t know if it helps or not, but I obviously want more. That’s for sure.”

ATPTour.com looks back at Djokovic and Tsitsipas’ first four ATP Head2Head meetings:

2019 Rolex Paris Masters – Quarter-finals – Djokovic def. Tsitsipas 6-1, 6-2 (Read Match Report)
Fresh off a loss against Tsitsipas in Shanghai, this was a critical moment for Djokovic in the battle for 2019 year-end No. 1 with Rafael Nadal. If Djokovic stood any chance of going into the Nitto ATP Finals with a shot at that honour, he needed to stay within 1,500 points of Nadal in Paris.

Djokovic showed his urgency in a 6-1, 6-2 victory against the Greek, winning a higher rate of second-serve points (77%) than Tsitsipas did first-serve points (63%). According to Hawkeye, Djokovic went down the line with his backhand 51 per cent of the time to great effect, and he did not face a break point.

The Serbian went on to claim his 34th ATP Masters 1000 title. And although he didn’t finish year-end No. 1, Djokovic made a statement to level his rivalry with Tsitsipas.

2019 Rolex Shanghai Masters – Quarter-finals – Tsitsipas def. Djokovic 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 (Read Match Report)
Tsitsipas did not realise he had qualified for the Nitto ATP Finals for the first time when he stepped on the court for this match. But he showed the grit of a London competitor by rallying from a set down against the World No. 1. The Greek had to hold his nerve on serve at 3-3 in the second set when he faced deuce, but he turned the match around to triumph in two hours and three minutes.

Tsitsipas became the seventh active player (and the youngest) to beat Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer in the same season. Twenty-six players have accomplished the feat overall. It was a continuation of good form for Tsitsipas, who had recently lost five of six tour-level matches before reaching the China Open final the week before Shanghai.

For Djokovic, this was a critical blow in his pursuit of a sixth year-end No. 1 finish, and it was also the first time in nine Shanghai appearances that he did not advance to at least the semi-finals.

2019 Mutua Madrid Open – Final – Djokovic def. Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 (Read Match Report)
Djokovic won the 2019 Australian Open. But after that event, he made just one quarter-final in his next three tournaments before arriving at the Mutua Madrid Open.

The Serbian turned things around there, though, punctuating his efforts on the Spanish clay with a comprehensive straight-sets victory against Tsitsipas. At the time, he levelled the race for the most Masters 1000 titles with Nadal at 33, and earned his 200th Top 10 victory to lift his third Madrid title.

Djokovic set the tone early with a break in his first return game, and he never looked back, never facing a break point in his one-hour, 33-minute victory. This was the pair’s only meeting on clay.

2018 Rogers Cup – Round of 16 – Tsitsipas def. Djokovic 6-3, 6-7(5), 6-3 (Read Match Report)
Tsitsipas arrived in Toronto as the No. 27 player in the FedEx ATP Rankings, while Djokovic, despite being World No. 10, was fresh off lifting the Wimbledon trophy.

Tsitsipas, who was only 19, remained calm after losing the second set, defeating Djokovic in two hours and 18 minutes to reach his first Masters 1000 final. A year prior, Tsitsipas had not won a tour-level match.

It wasn’t that Djokovic lost the match through an overwhelming number of unforced errors, either. Tsitsipas showed early signs of his shotmaking and confidence, closing out his triumph with back-to-back cross-court forehand winners.

Reigning Nitto ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas probably expected to speak about his good form in his press conference following a 6-2, 6-3 win against Daniel Evans on Friday in the quarter-finals of the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

But it’s safe to say he didn’t expect his mother, Julia Salnikova, to crash the press conference.

“I’m following you to the press conference to make sure I’m aware how you feel, what are your statements,” Salnikova said, eliciting a smile from her son. “I’m just wondering, I’m not sure you really know so much about…

“Did she read the statements I said a few days ago? That’s why she’s here,” Tsitsipas said, cracking a laugh.

After defeating Alexander Bublik in the second round, a reporter asked Tsitsipas how important family support is for his career.

“I’m trying to sometimes not pay too much attention of what they say. It’s quite difficult, honestly,” Tsitsipas said. “But I love them. I love them. I love them. I honestly don’t know if I would have achieved the things I have achieved today if it wasn’t for them. They want the best for me.”

Salnikova caught wind of his son’s words, and she put on her reporter hat on Friday to follow up with him about it.

“I don’t spend so much time with you. This is my chance. What I want to ask you is, I’m not sure you are really so much aware of the number of these great tennis players followed by the parents,” Salnikova said.

“Actually you’re a journalist, right?” Tsitsipas asked. “True, verified.”

“The question is, are you really aware of the number of the great tennis players that were helped and followed by the parents on the [ATP] Tour?”

Tsitsipas’ mother pushed him to name as many players as he could who have been coached by their parents.

“I want to know male players with Grand Slam titles, Top 5,” Tsitsipas said.

“Maybe you can be the first one,” his mom replied.

“Okay, good.”

It’s a press conference Tsitsipas, his mother and the media in the room will remember.

But now, Tsitsipas will refocus on the task at hand, as he plays World No. 1 Novak Djokovic on Saturday for the Dubai title.

“He’s in really good form and shape. He’s been playing great tennis. Everybody has seen what he did at Australian Open. For sure I’m going to have to bring the best out of my game and reduce my mistakes and in general reduce everything, stay aggressive like today,” Tsitsipas said. “He’s just a solid player. Everything is good: forehand, backhand, serve. Very consistent, very solid. Doesn’t miss a lot. It’s going to take something extra for me to beat him tomorrow. I’m going to try and seek for that.”

Casper Ruud made history two weeks ago by becoming the first Norwegian to win an ATP Tour title in Buenos Aires. Now, the 21-year-old is only two wins from lifting a second tour-level trophy.

The second-seeded Ruud defeated seventh-seeded Argentine Federico Delbonis 7-5, 7-5 on Friday to reach the semi-finals of the Chile Dove Men+Care Open. Ruud will face third seed Albert Ramos-Vinolas for a spot in the final.

“It was obviously tough… it was a very close match. I was ready for it before going out there… Delbonis is a very good [player] and especially a very good clay-court player,” Ruud said. “I really wanted to win this time.”

Ruud levelled his ATP Head2Head series with the Argentine at 1-1 after losing against the lefty in Sao Paulo three years ago. The Norwegian triumphed in a three-setter in Western & Southern Open qualifying last year, which does not count as a tour-level match. 

The World No. 38 has now defeated two straight lefties after eliminating home favourite Alejandro Tabilo in the second round. He will try to make it three in a row against Ramos-Vinolas.

“It’s different, definitely, to play three lefties in a row. It’s not something you get to do every tournament, so it’s a little bit different, a new experience. But I think it’s okay,” said Ruud, who began the week with a 3-8 tour-level record against lefties. “In my career I’ve had some problems playing against left-handed players, but I’m getting better and better every time I play them.”

Ruud’s next opponent, Ramos-Vinolas, beat eighth seed Thiago Monteiro 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 42 minutes.

The Spaniard has enjoyed plenty of success on clay, reaching the final of the 2017 Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters. Seven of the eight ATP Tour championship matches he has reached (2-6) have come on clay.

Ramos-Vinolas only won four more points than his Brazilian opponent, but he saved two of the three break points he faced to advance.