Novak Djokovic vs. Kei Nishikori: Score, Recap from 2014 ATP World Tour Finals
Novak Djokovic was made to battle hard for his spot in the last two of the ATP World Tour Finals, winning 6-1, 3-6, 6-4, 6-0 against Kei Nishikori.
The result was confirmed by the official ATP World Tour Twitter account:
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The World No. 1 looked unflustered against the Japanese player in the early stages of the match, taking the first set in stunning fashion. Nishikori rallied to take the second set, but Djokovic showed his pedigree in the third, digging deep to win through in emphatic fashion.
Ahead of this semi-final clash, Djokovic spoke of his willingness to cap what’s been a fine year off in style and how he’s embracing the mantle of being the world’s best player, per BBC Sport:
"It's been a long year, a long season, it's an incredible achievement and I want to thank my team and my family and all the people who supported me.
I'm aware that being number one in the world is the biggest challenge a tennis player can have. It's an incredible feeling and I'm very happy.
"
Indeed, having dropped just nine games in his three matches in the tournament so far, Djokovic has been imperious in London. But Nishikori is a player who's also impressed at the ATP Finals, and after having won two of the last three meeting between the pair, the 24-year-old would have come into this one quietly confident.
The fourth seed looked comfortable in the opening stages of this one too, showcasing his talent with some scintillating shots as the first three games went with serve. But Novak also seemed to settle into an early rhythm, as he served superbly during the opening exchanges.
Sky Sports Tennis paid tribute to the early efforts of each player:
The Serb has been ruthless all week, though, and here he was pouncing on every second serve of Nishikori's. A couple of mistakes from the fourth seed gifted Djokovic two break points in the fourth game, and while a decent serve from Nishikori saved the first, another unforced error gave the World No. 1 a critical break of serve to go 3-1 up.
Djokovic was operating with real panache at this point, and with his serve metronomically accurate, he motored into a 4-1 lead. The Japanese was reeling, and with the Serb continuing to play aggressively to the Nishikori serve, Djokovic seized the double break. He had no problems serving out the set 6-1, and the Japanese resembled a man completely demoralised.
It took Novak just 23 minutes to wrap up the first set, as noted here by Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times:
Nishikori failed to win a single point on his second serve in the first, such was the immense pressure Djokovic was putting on it. And the second set began in exactly the same fashion, with absolutely no let up of intensity from the World No. 1, who broke again to take his sixth game in succession.
ESPN Tennis provided us with an indication of just how difficult the fourth seed was finding things on his serve:
"Djokovic breaks to open the second set and leads 6-1 1-0. Nishikori has won just 11 of 26 service points.
— ESPNTennis (@ESPNTennis) November 15, 2014"
But surprisingly, in the very next game, Nishikori fared a whole lot better. And when Djokovic surrendered a break of serve after double-faulting, the crowd inside the O2 Arena stirred. Perhaps we were going to see a competitive clash after all?
Djokovic was far from happy with the spectators after they applauded his double fault, but Stuart Fraser of the Mail Online thought it was a little out of order from the World No. 1:
Suddenly the Japanese looked confident, as Djokovic's industry reeled slightly, allowing the fourth seed to get a foothold in the game. Nishikori was looking a lot more comfortable up against the Djokovic serve, and although the next five games went with serve, the match had a much more even feel about it.
Indeed, it was Djokovic who was looking ragged in the face of late Nishikori pressure, and the Japanese broke the Serb in enthralling fashion in the eighth game to go 5-3 up; he held his serve in the very next game to take the set 6-3 and the match into a deciding third, per BBC Tennis:
The Japanese player has a fine record in deciding sets too, as noted here by sports writer by Ravi Ubha:
And he had the chance to get off to an ideal start in the decider, but Djokovic clung in there to save two break points in the opening game. But when Nishikori surrendered a break point in his service game, the Serb snaffled it with gumption to take a vital break and a 2-0 lead.
That missed opportunity seemed to sap the impetus out of the Japanese's game, and the World No. 1 capitalised to win the next three games and go 5-0 up.
At the end of the fourth game, a clearly frustrated Nishikori flung his racket to the floor in frustration; in truth, it was some rudimentary lapses from him, not the brilliance of Djokovic, that saw the fourth seed on the brink of defeat.
Tennis coach Brad Gilbert gave us an indication of how quickly Novak had motored through the deciding set:
Resembling a beaten man, Nishikori eventually double-faulted to concede the match in the sixth game, losing the deciding set 6-0.
While he was made to battle here, Djokovic’s run to the final has been magnificent, and although Roger Federer has ben in serene form during the early stages of tournament too, even the mercurial Swiss will struggle to get near the reigning champion.
At this juncture, it looks a mere inevitability that the Serb will win this championship for the third consecutive year.
This loss brings the curtain down on a wonderful year for Nishikori. He’s surged up the rankings in 2014 and made it to his first-ever Grand Slam final too. It’s critical the Japanese builds on his progression over the past 12 months, and despite a heartbreaking defeat here, he’s got the talent to bounce back in style in 2015.
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