Novak Djokovic beat Casper Ruud 7-5 6-3 to win the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals for a record-equalling sixth time in his career.
Djokovic’s title means that he equals Roger Federer for the tournament record of titles and becomes the oldest champion at the season finale.
The 35-year-old’s victory ensured he maintained his unbeaten run against Ruud. He walks away with a record payday of more than $4.7 million, as well as 1,500 ATP Rankings points.
The title is Djokovic’s first at the season-ending competition since 2015.
“Seven years, it’s been a long time,” Djokovic said. “At the same time, the fact that I waited seven years makes his victory even sweeter and even bigger.
“It’s a huge deal (to end the year with a win). I’ve probably talked about this season and how unusual it is a thousand times, so I’m not going to repeat what most people who follow tennis know. It’s just a big relief and satisfaction.
“Also, I look forward to having a couple of weeks off,” Djokovic continued. “I was on the needles (edge), whether it was for tournaments or waiting for permissions to go somewhere. So, I’m really glad that I managed to end it in a positive way.”
Ruud saved two break points in his first service game of the opening set to hold, but it set the tone for the match, with the Norwegian regularly forced onto the back foot.
There were a number of lengthy rallies during the game, including 36 shots in the final one to set up a championship point for Djokovic who then clinched the title with an ace.
In the doubles competition, Rajeev Ram and Joe Salisbury beat Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 to put last season’s defeat behind them.
Salisbury is the first Briton to win the Nitto ATP Finals doubles title, while Ram is the 18th American to clinch the crown.
“That’s probably up there with one of our best matches, one of our best matches as a team,” Salisbury said.
“I think we’re so proud of everything we’ve done this week. We’ve come through some tough situations, but we’ve stuck together the whole way. [I’m] so happy, I can’t believe we’ve achieved this.”
