Djokovic keeps cool to earn title

Published on Sunday 15 November 2009 23:04

NOVAK Djokovic shrugged off a determined challenge from crowd favourite Gael Monfils to claim the Paris Masters title with a 6-2, 5-7, 7-6 win yesterday.

World No3 Djokovic, who had outclassed Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals and had dropped only one set en route to the final, had to dig deep to win his second title in as many weeks.

Outplayed in the early stages, Monfils, seeded 15th, thrilled a partisan 14,000 crowd packing the Bercy hall by fighting back to win the second set and recovering from 4-1 down to level the decisive set before losing it 7-3 in a tiebreak.

Djokovic, who beat world No1 Roger Federer in the Basel final last week, showed signs of fragility at times and had to wait for Monfils to double fault on the first match point to seal victory after two hours 43 minutes. The 22-year-old Serb has won 76 matches this year, more than any other player, although disappointing results at major events stopped him from getting anywhere near the No1 spot.

His current form suggests, however, that he will be the favourite at the season-ending World Tour Finals in London, which run from 22-29 November, and if he can maintain his killer instinct he could give Federer and Nadal a run for their money in 2010.

Relying on his devastating forehand and hardly making an error in the first set, Djokovic put the pressure on his opponent by winning the first game to love and then breaking him courtesy of an unforced error from Monfils. The Frenchman went on to lose the set with a double fault after just 30 minutes.

The second set's script was similar at first, another unforced error from Monfils handing Djokovic a 2-0 lead, and a crushing win looked on the cards, but the Serb then dropped his guard, enabling his opponent to find his way back into the match.

Hope returned for Monfils when Djokovic netted a volley to lose his service game in the fifth game. The 23-year-old Paris-born player went on to earn break points in the seventh and ninth games but wasted them both.

In the 11th game, however, Monfils seized his chance by hitting a return winner to serve for the set, which he took with a service winner.

Monfils, playing his first final in a Masters 1000 event, then staged his remarkable comeback in the third set.

With the crowd roaring its appreciation, Djokovic could have been forgiven for wilting under pressure, but he held firm to see out the match.