20 May 2009: Djokovic, Returns To Seal Victory; Verdasco Through To Fourth Round

ATP World No. 4 Novak Djokovic returned to Suzanne Lenglen court on Friday to close out a 6-3, 6-4, 6-1 second-round victory over Ukrainian qualifier Sergiy Stakhovsky at Roland Garros. The Serbian had won the first two sets when the match was postponed due to bad light on Thursday evening.
Fourth seed Djokovic, who lost out at the semi-final stage to eventual champion Rafael Nadal in the past two years, raced out to a 5-0 lead in the third set at the match’s resumption on Friday. Stakhovsky was allowed one game as a loss in concentration cost the Serbian as he served for the match, but he quickly rectified the situation by breaking Stakhovsky’s serve for the seventh time in the clash to close out victory after two hours and four minutes in total.

"Well it's not pleasant when you don't finish a match in one day, especially at the Grand Slams when you're playing best of five (sets)," said Djokovic. "I was lucky to come back in the second set and be two sets up, so that was really important.

"Today I played really well all third set and happy to finish early so I can have more time to recover, basically, for next match."

World No. 110 Stakhovsky was featuring in the second round of a Grand Slam championship for the first time after qualifying into the main draw and defeating Argentine Brian Dabul in the first round.

The 22-year-old Djokovic is on course to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals – where he is the defending champion – largely due to strong results in the lead-up to Roland Garros. The right-hander finished runner-up to Nadal at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournaments in Monte-Carlo and Rome before capturing his inaugural home-town title in Belgrade (d. Kubot). Djokovic came his closest yet to defeating Nadal on clay this season when he held three match points in the semi-finals of ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid, but ultimately was defeated by the Spaniard in a third-set tie-break. An ATP World Tour title at Dubai (d. Ferrer) and a runner-up finish at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami (l. to Murray) on hard courts earlier in the season have also contributed to his 39-11 match record in 2009.

Djokovic is chasing a second Grand Slam title after winning his first major at the 2008 Australian Open, with victory over first-time finalist Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. He also finished runner-up to Roger Federer at the 2007 US Open in his first Grand Slam final.

For a place in the fourth round, Djokovic will take on German No. 29 seed Philipp Kohlschreiber – who also returned Friday to complete a 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-3 victory over 2003 Roland Garros champion Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain. The match had been finely poised at two-sets-all when it was postponed for bad light on Thursday evening. In their one previous meeting, Djokovic defeated Kohlschreiber in straight sets at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells in 2008.

Eighth seed Fernando Verdasco was the first man to advance to the fourth round as he prevailed 6-2, 7-6(4), 7-6(8) in an all-Spanish clash with No. 31 seed Nicolas Almagro. In an edgy end to the two-hour and 47-minute encounter, Verdasco squandered five match points when he served for victory at 6-5 in the third set and was denied on a further three opportunities at 6-4 and 8-7 in the tie-break before clinching victory at the ninth time of asking when Almagro sliced a backhand wide.

The 25-year-old Verdasco has not dropped a set en route to matching his best Roland Garros performance (he also reached the fourth round in 2007-8). The left-hander achieved his best Grand Slam result at the Australian Open in January, when he lost in an epic five-set semi-final to eventual champion Nadal. The Madrid native, who broke into the Top 10 of the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings after his Australian Open success, has reached at least the quarter-finals in all eight of his tournaments this season and has compiled a 26-8 match record.

Verdasco will hope to improve on a 1-4 career record against No. 10 seed Nikolay Davydenko when he faces the Russian for a place in the quarter-finals. Davydenko survived dropping the second set to defeat Stanislas Wawrinka, the No. 17 seed from Switzerland, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. The 27 year old converted five of nine break points, hit 30 winners and enjoyed success on his forays into the net – winning 13 of 14 points – in the two-hour and 57-minute match.

Davydenko, the last remaining Russian in the main singles draw, reached the Roland Garros semi-finals in 2005 (l. to Puerta) and 2007 (l. to Federer). The right-hander’s start to the season was interrupted by a left heel injury that kept him sidelined for three months. On his return at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo he reached the quarter-finals (l. to Murray) and has since made semi-final appearances in Barcelona (l. to Nadal) and Estoril (l. to Blake).

World No. 12 Fernando Gonzalez booked his place in the fourth round with a tight 7-5, 6-3, 7-5 victory over French wild card Josselin Ouanna on Philippe Chatrier court. World No. 134 Ouanna had reached the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time after defeating former No. 1 Marat Safin 10-8 in the fifth set in the second round.

The 28-year-old Gonzalez is one win away from reaching the Roland Garros quarter-finals for the third time, having lost to Juan Carlos Ferrero at that stage in 2003 and to Roger Federer last year. The Chilean, who won the 1998 boys’ singles title at Roland Garros, has a 14-2 match record on clay in 2009 – winning his 11th ATP World Tour title at Vina del Mar and reaching consecutive semi-finals at Barcelona (l. to Ferrer) and ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome (l. to Nadal).

Gonzalez goes on to meet Romanian No. 30 seed Victor Hanescu, who upset home-hope and No. 7 seed Gilles Simon. The 27-year-old Hanescu converted four of 15 break point chances, while saving all six break points he faced to wrap up the 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 victory in two hours and 22 minutes.

World No. 33 Hanescu improved to a 4-16 record against Top 10 players after winning three matches at one tournament for the first time this season. The right-hander reached his lone Grand Slam quarter-final at Roland Garros four years ago, when he lost to Roger Federer.

May 26, 2009 Djokovic Advances; Tsonga Wins All-French Tussle

ATP World Tour No. 4 Novak Djokovic (pictured) advanced to the Roland Garros second round after a strong opening performance against Ecuadorian Nicolas Lapentti in Paris on Tuesday. The Serbian’s commanding performance saw him open up a 6-3, 3-1 lead over Lapentti before the former Top 10 player was forced to retire with an ankle injury.
Djokovic broke early to lead 3-1 in cool and blustery conditions on a Tuesday that had earlier been interrupted by heavy showers in the French capital. With the Serbian well on top, he was put at an even greater advantage when former No. 6 Lapentti injured his ankle mid-point when trailing 2-5. The Guayaquil native immediately sought attention from the trainer and after strapping had been applied to his ankle he carried on to allow Djokovic to close out the first set 6-3. Djokovic then further added to the Ecuadorian’s woes by breaking at the start of the second set and Lapentti was forced to retire after Djokovic held for a 3-1 lead.

Djokovic, who celebrated his 22nd birthday last Friday, is bidding to reach the Roland Garros quarter-finals or better for the fourth straight year, after losing to eventual champion Rafael Nadal in the 2006 quarter-final and in the semi-finals in 2007 and ‘08. The Belgrade native won his lone Grand Slam title at the 2008 Australian Open, with victory over Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

The right-handed Djokovic comes into his fifth Roland Garros appearance in strong form after enjoying much success in the European clay-court swing. Djokovic, who has a 38-11 match record on the season, reached back-to-back finals at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments in Monte-Carlo and Rome – where he was thwarted by Rafael Nadal on both occasions – before capturing his inaugural home-town title with victory over Lukasz Kubot.

He completed his Roland Garros preparations by reaching the semi-finals at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Madrid, where he held three match points before being foiled once more by Nadal.

Djokovic next will face Ukrainian qualifier Sergiy Stakhovsky, who rallied from a one-set deficit to knock out Argentina’s Brian Dabul 4-6, 7-5, 7-6(2), 6-3. It was the first Grand Slam main draw win for World No. 110 Stakhovsky.

No. 9 seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga came through an all-French tussle with Julien Benneteau, prevailing 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to win his first match at Roland Garros. The 24 year old lost to Andy Roddick on his only previous appearance in 2005.

The Le Mans native has enjoyed his strongest results on hard court in 2009, winning two ATP World Tour titles at Johannesburg (d. Chardy) and Marseille (d. Llodra) and reaching the quarter-finals at the Australian Open (l. to Verdasco) and ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami (l. to Djokovic). The right-hander's greatest Grand Slam performance came at the 2008 Australian Open where, ranked No. 38, he defeated No. 2 Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals to reach his first major final (l. to Djokovic).

Tsonga next will face Argentine Juan Monaco, who handed Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus his second successive first-round loss at Roland Garros with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 win. Monaco capitalised on 41 unforced errors from Baghdatis to seal victory in one hour as 56 minutes. Tsonga won his only previous meeting with Monaco in the first round of the 2009 Australian Open.

Spanish No. 16 seed Tommy Robredo made a confident start to his Roland Garros campaign with a 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 victory over French wild card Adrian Mannarino. The 27 year old combated losing his own serve three times by converting 10 of 23 break point chances and hitting 21 winners to wrap up victory in just 98 minutes.

Robredo is a three-time former quarter-finalist at Roland Garros (2003, 2005, 2007), making it his most successful Grand Slam. The right-hander improved to a 29-10 match record on the season and has enjoyed his strongest results on clay – winning his eighth and ninth ATP World Tour titles at Costa do Sauipe (d. Bellucci) and Buenos Aires (d. Monaco).

The Hostalric native next will face Spanish compatriot Daniel Gimeno-Traver, who advanced when Russian Evgeny Korolev was forced to retire injured with Gimeno-Traver leading 6-4.

Philipp Kohlschreiber, the No. 29 seed from Germany, made light work of his first-round encounter against Australian Bernard Tomic, hitting 23 winners and breaking serve eight times as he defeated the wild card entrant 6-1, 6-2, 6-2.

He goes on to face 2003 champion Juan Carlos Ferrero, who prevailed over past Roland Garros semi-finalist Ivan Ljubicic 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 in three hours and 17 minutes. The 29-year-old Ferrero has a 31-8 record at Roland Garros, where he was also a finalist in 2002 (l. to Costa). This past April, he ended a five-year title drought by clinching the clay title at the ATP World Tour 250 tennis tournament in Estoril (d. Serra).

Argentine Maximo Gonzalez booked his place in the second round as he upset No. 22-seeded American Mardy Fish 6-3, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6(4). World No. 71 Gonzalez hit 39 winners and converted five of 13 break points to secure victory after two hours and 47 minutes. The 25 year old also reached the Roland Garros second round last year, defeating Roko Karanusic in five sets before losing to Mikhail Youzhny.

Gonzalez next will meet Italian Andreas Seppi, who accounted for last week’s Kitzbuehel champion Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 to avoid a fourth successive first-round exit at Roland Garros.

LONDON, 22-29 NOVEMBER 2009

Only the Top 8 singles players and doubles teams capable of demonstrating sustained excellence across the 63 ATP World Tour tournaments and the 4 Grand Slams earn the right to compete in this prestigious season-ending climax and the chance to be crowned the 2009 ATP World Tour Champion


Featuring a unique round-robin format, the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals will see all players playing a minimum of three matches each as they battle for a berth in the knockout semi-finals and beyond. With the quality of each match akin to that of a Grand Slam quarterfinal or better, this is one sporting spectacle you can’t afford to miss

The rewards are high – a chance to win the biggest indoor tournament in world tennis and an opportunity to join an elite group of former champions including Bjorn Borg, John McEnroe and Pete Sampras

This November, the world’s top tennis players will have no place to hide as the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals comes to The O2 in London for the first time in the event's illustrious 40-year history

May 16 2009 : Nadal Closes In On Masters 1000 Clay-Court Title Sweep, After Saving 3 M.P. In SFs

..Oh No!! Again....

Spaniard Rafael Nadal proved just why he is so hard to beat on clay Saturday, when he saved three match points in a dramatic final-set tie-break to beat Novak Djokovic of Serbia 3-6, 7-6(5), 7-6(9) in four hours and three minutes for a spot in the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open final. It is believed to be the longest best-of-three sets singles match on the ATP World Tour in the Open Era (since 1968).
Nadal will take a 25-1 career record in clay-court finals into Sunday's title-match against World No. 2 Roger Federer of Switzerland, who beat Juan Martin del Potro in the other semi-final. It will be the pair's first meeting since the Australian Open in January.
Nadal, the reigning ATP World Tour Champion is now just one victory away from completing the clean sweep of ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court titles in one season.
It was the first time Nadal had played a third set tie-break on clay since 11 July 2003, when he lost to Nicolas Lapentti at Bastad, Sweden. It was Nadal’s fifth straight victory over Djokovic and the third time in the past five weeks he had beaten the Serbian (also ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo and Rome finals).

Nadal vs. Djokovic Rivalry Breakdown

Nadal improved to 37-3 lifetime against Top 10 opponents on clay, including 30-1 while in the Top 10 on clay. His only loss while in the Top 10 came to then No.1-ranked Roger Federer in the Hamburg final in May 2007.
The 22-year-old Nadal extended his winning streak on clay courts to 33 matches and to 150-4 on his favoured surface since 2005. He improved to 27-1 lifetime in ATP World Tour clay-court semi-finals and to 19-0 on clay this year. His last loss on red dirt was against compatriot and former World No. 1/Roland Garros champion Juan Carlos Ferrero on May 7, 2008 in the second round of ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Rome.
Nadal leads the ATP World Tour circuit this year with a 41-3 match record that includes five titles. By beating Djokovic in the Madrid semi-finals he has denied his Serbian rival the change to return to No. 3 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings next week.
"In a game like that with so many match points I think you need luck to win a match like that," explained Nadal. "There’s no doubt about it but I played with great courage and I think everything went well for me.
"I played the first set poorly; it looked very bleak to me. Here with the altitude it was very hard for me to hit the ball with confidence, I was always coming up short, I wasn’t getting the distance right. But I think that little by little I was able to get my rhythm and I ended up playing well.
"That’s why I felt that emotional with the public, with what happened in the game. The public really helped me and supported me and I don’t have any words to thank them for this final they helped me reach."

Djokovic, who turns 22 on 22 May, had the better of the opening exchanges and led Nadal 3-0 – courtesy of a service break in the second game. The third seed managed to maintain his advantage, winning 20 of 26 service points to take the first set in 51 minutes.
Djokovic’s fluency continued in the second set, but he was left to rue missed opportunities for service breaks in the third and ninth games. Nadal managed to fight off another break point in an 11-minute game for a 6-5 lead and went on to create his first break point opportunity, a set point, in the next game. With Djokovic approaching the net, Nadal was rushed into a backhand error and the second set was decided on a tie-break.
Nadal maintained his record of never losing a tie-break against Djokovic to level the score line at one-set apiece after two hours and 30 minutes of play. Nadal had hit nine winners and 21 unforced errors, while Djokovic went 0/4 on break points opportunities in the one-hour and 37-minute second set.
Djokovic regained his composure to open up a 3-1 lead, after breaking Nadal in the fourth game. But Nadal responded with an immediate service break of his own. Djokovic received treatment for a right knee injury and muscle fatigue after the fifth game at the change of ends. The pair’s 18th career meeting went with serve to a tie-break, which many spectators on the Manolo Santana Court at the Caja Magica could not bear to watch.
Djokovic created his first match point when he hit a forehand winner for a 6-5 lead, but he could not capitalise on the chance as Nadal hit a forehand winner down the line from a long baseline rally. A second match point went begging on a Nadal second serve at 7-6, when Nadal wrong-footed Djokovic with a series of forehands before hitting the winning forehand stroke on approach to the net.
Nadal’s first match point came and went at 8-7. Djokovic hit a nerveless forehand winner, having hit a second serve to Nadal’s forehand, for his third match point at 9-8 after four hours of play. Nadal gritted his teeth once again, and urged on by his compatriots was able to recover to 10-9 courtesy of a Djokovic forehand in the net and a forehand winner down the line. Nadal seized control of his second match point by forcing Djokovic out wide to lunge for a forehand, which landed in the net. Nadal has now won 31 sets to 13 for Djokovic in their 18 career meetings.
"I’m very disappointed that I can play this well and still not win a match," said Djokovic. "I’ve think that I’ve played my best tennis on this surface. A couple of points decided the winner."
Nadal hit 31 winners and committed 50 unforced errors in total. The top seed hit three aces and four double faults. He converted one of two break point opportunities and won nine of 14 points at the net. Djokovic, by comparison, had struck 37 winners, committed 43 unforced errors, hit six aces and three double faults, and converted two of eight break point opportunities. Djokovic was making his fourth straight appearance at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tennis tournament (9-4 record). He also reached the semi-finals in 2007 (l. to Nalbandian).
This year the Monte-Carlo resident has captured two ATP World Tour titles at Dubai (d. Ferrer) and Belgrade (d. Kubot). He has also finished runner-up at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments in Miami (l Murray), Monte-Carlo (l. to Nadal) and Rome (l. to Nadal)
The World No. 4 was attempting to reach his fifth straight final and sixth overall. He dropped to a 37-11 record on the 2009 ATP World Tour season.
Djokovic said: "I'm taking positives [from] the last couple of matches we've played on this surface and the positives are that I'm one point away from the victory. I don't know, next time I’ll probably take two rackets on the match point. I don’t know what to do."
Spanish superstar Nadal captured his sixth Grand Slam championship trophy at the Australian Open (d. Federer) in January and has since clinched further trophies at Barcelona and ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments in Indian Wells (d. Murray), Monte-Carlo and Rome, (d. Djokovic both times).
The Mallorca native is making his seventh appearance in Madrid (16-5 record) and will look win the 37th title of his career in Sunday’s final. He won the Madrid title in 2005 (d. Ljubicic).

15 May 2009: Nadal, Djokovic Square Off For 18th Time In Semi-final Showdown

Reigning ATP World Tour Champion Rafael Nadal extended his clay court winning streak to 32 matches in a row as he defeated No. 7 seed and hometown native Fernando Verdasco 6-4, 7-5, in the quarter-finals of the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open on Friday night.
The 22-year-old Spaniard improved to 9-0 lifetime against Verdasco and to an ATP World Tour-best 40-3 match record on the season. He is 18-0 on clay this year, losing only one set, that coming in the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters final last month to Novak Djokovic, who he will meet in the semi-finals on Saturday. Nadal is 13-4 lifetime against Djokovic, including an 8-0 mark on clay.
Nadal-Djokovic Rivalry Breakdown
Nadal comes into the semi-finals with a 149-4 record on clay since 2005 and he will be attempting to reach his seventh final of the season. He is trying to become the first player (since 1990) to win all three ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay tournaments in the same year. He's won titles at the Australian Open and ATP World Tour Masters 1000 events in Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo and Rome along with Barcelona. He also reached the final in Rotterdam.
Nadal captured the opening set in 47 minutes by breaking in the 10th game at 0-40 as Verdasco hit a forehand long. In the previous game, Nadal escaped from a 0-30 deficit to hold. In the second set, Verdasco took advantage of nine unforced errors by Nadal in the first three games to take a double break, 3-0 lead. Verdasco made it 4-0 before Nadal held for the first time. In the next game, Verdasco was broken at 15-40 as he netted a forehand on break point. Nadal held again and then broke Verdasco to level the set at 4-4. Verdasco saved two match points on his serve in the ninth game, rallying from 15-40 down. But in the 11th game, Verdasco was broken at 0-40 when he hit a forehand long.

Asked what his frame of mind was at 0-4 in the second set, Nadal said; "[I was] just trying to be more aggressive in order to prepare for the third and get a good feeling for the next set. I was playing rather poorly at that moment."
Looking ahead to the weekend, Nadal tried to play down his heavy favouritism to win the title and, more immediately, to win his semi-final against Djokovic. "In this tournament I don’t even think that I’m favorite. I’m one of the four players in semi-finals and we’ll see what happens, because I think that these conditions are quite different from a normal clay court tournament and playing against [Djokovic] is going to be a true challenge. Djokovic is going to try to make me be more inside and to make me use my forehand more."
Third seed Djokovic hit five aces and won 72 per cent of service points to beat Croatian wild card Ivan Ljubicic 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 45 minutes. Djokovic had also beaten Ljubicic in April 2008 at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo.
Djokovic, who celebrates his 22nd birthday on 22 May, also reached the Madrid semi-finals in 2007 (l. to Nalbandian). He has a 37-10 record on the 2009 ATP World Tour season (15-4 on clay), which includes two ATP World Tour titles at Dubai (d. Ferrer) and Belgrade (d. Kubot). He has also reached the past three finals at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments in Miami (l. to Murray), Monte-Carlo and Rome (l. to Nadal both times).
"The high altitude [was] more suitable to his style," said Djokovic. "I knew I had to get as many returns back as possible to get into the rally, where I knew I had more chances than he did and I think that was the key today. I was trying to open up the court more."
Ljubicic, 30, currently No. 54 in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings, dropped to a 14-11 season mark. He reached the Madrid final in 2005 (l. to Nadal).

13 May 2009: Djokovic, Nadal Close In On Re-Match

Serbian Novak Djokovic and World No. 1 Rafael Nadal are just one win away from clashing at the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open, in what would be a repeat of this year's ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo and Rome finals.
Djokovic recorded his 36th win of the ATP World Tour 2009 season after beating Andreas Seppi of Italy 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday for a place in the quarter-finals of the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open. Djokovic beat Seppi in three sets en route to the Belgrade title last week.
The 21-year-old Djokovic was able to covert three break point opportunities in the one-hour and 39-minute encounter on Arantxa Sanchez Vicario Court. Djokovic won 70 per cent of service points and hit four aces to improve to 6-0 lifetime against Seppi, who dropped to an 11-14 mark.
"I've been playing a lot of tennis matches lately, so certainly I'm exhausted, physically but more mentally," explained Djokovic. "I think I'm in quite good shape and I worked hard on my fitness prior to this clay-court season and I think it's paying off with the results. I'm really happy with what I've been achieving so far."
Djokovic has won two ATP World Tour titles at Dubai (d. Ferrer) and Belgrade (d. Kubot) this year and has amassed a 36-10 match record (14-4 on clay). He has also finished runner-up at three successive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments at Miami (l. to Murray), Monte-Carlo and Rome (l. to Nadal both times).
Djokovic will next meet former World No. 3 Ivan Ljubicic in the quarter-finals. Ljubibic upset World No. 7 Gilles Simon of France 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 by saving 10 of 12 break points in the two-hour and 10-minute encounter. It was the pair's third career meeting. Ljubicic improved to 14-10 on the season, while 24-year-old Simon - a semi-finalist at Marseille and Dubai this season - dropped to an 18-13 mark.
ATP World Tour Champion Rafael Nadal advanced to the last eight without hitting a ball on Thursday, after his third-round opponent Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany retired prior to the match with a left leg injury. Nadal is chasing his sixth trophy of the season this week. American Andy Roddick also advanced when Russian Nikolay Davydenko withdrew, also due to a leg injury.
Nadal next faces fellow Spaniard and ATP World Tour No. 8 Fernando Verdasco, who shrugged off a determined first-set challenge from Argentine Juan Monaco to win 7-5, 6-2. Nadal boasts an 8-0 career record against his countryman and has beaten Verdasco twice this year at the Australian Open and two weeks ago in Rome.
Loaded Quarter-finalsSeven Top 10 players have reached the Madrid quarter-finals, marking the fourth time in 2009 that seven of the Top 10 players in the South African Airways ATP Rankings have reached the last eight at the same tournament. Last year the most Top 10 players to reach the quarter-finals was six. Here is a breakdown:Australian Open: 1) Nadal 2) Federer 3) Djokovic 6) del Potro 7) Tsonga 8) Simon 9) RoddickIndian Wells: 1) Nadal 2) Federer 3) Djokovic 4) Murray 6) del Potro 7) Roddick 10) Verdasco Miami: 1) Nadal 2) Federer 3) Djokovic 4) Murray 6) Roddick 7) del Potro 9) Verdasco Madrid: 1) Nadal 2) Federer 3) Murray 4) Djokovic 5) del Potro 6) Roddick 8) Verdasco

13 May 2009 Djokovic Down To Business Early; Simon Cruises

ATP World Tour No. 4 Novak Djokovic got down to business early at the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open with a strong opening-round performance to defeat Spaniard Oscar Hernandez 6-3, 6-3 at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournament on Wednesday.
The 21-year-old Djokovic surrendered his No. 3 South African Airways 2009 ATP Ranking – a position he had held since 13 August, 2007 - to Andy Murray on Monday and signalled his intention to regain his Top 3 standing quickly with a dominant display on Manolo Santana court.
"I think that I have played fantastic tennis and have had huge success on both hard courts and clay courts so I will be very patient and I am sure that if I continue this way I will get my spot back," said Djokovic. "Andy absolutely deserves that place because he´s been winning a lot of matches lately and playing good tennis but it is still a long way for him and for me."
The Serbian raced out to a 3-0 lead with a break of serve early in the first set, before later closing out the one-set lead 6-3. Another early break in the second set established his control in the match and a second break in the ninth game secured victory for Djokovic after one hour and 38 minutes. The Monte-Carlo resident enjoyed his best result in Madrid in 2007, when he reached the semi-finals (l. to Nalbandian).
"Maybe results wise it looked easy but it wasn’t easy, that’s for sure. It was difficult because there is a difference in altitude and the balls are flying quite a lot and you don’t get a lot of control. I was trying to produce a lot of spin and get in to the rhythm and I’ve done a pretty good job today."
Djokovic has been in a rich vein of form in recent weeks. The Belgrade native has reached the final in his past four tournaments, beginning with a runner-up finish to Andy Murray at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Miami. He has been the closest challenger to Rafael Nadal in the European clay-court swing, finishing runner-up to the top-ranked Spaniard at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournaments in Monte-Carlo and Rome, before clinching his hometown title at the inaugural Serbia Open (d. Kubot) last week.

For a spot in the quarter-finals, Djokovic will face Italian Andreas Seppi – against whom he has a 5-0 career lead, including victory in the Belgrade semi-finals last week. The No. 36-ranked Seppi withstood 10 aces from Sam Querrey to break the American four times in a hard-fought 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 victory, improving to an 11-13 match record on the season.
Fifth-seeded Argentine Juan Martin del Potro advanced to the third round when last week’s Munich champion Tomas Berdych retired due to a left-leg injury, with del Potro leading 6-2, 4-1.
The 20-year-old del Potro, who was a quarter-finalist (l. to Federer) last year in Madrid - when it was still staged on indoor hard court - won his 22nd match of the season (22-7 record). The Tandil native has had mixed results on clay in 2009, losing in the opening round at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo (l. to Ljubicic) before reaching the quarter-finals at the same-level event in Rome (l. to Djokovic). The right-hander opened the 2009 ATP World Tour season by winning his fifth title at Auckland (d. Querrey) before reaching the Australian Open quarter-finals (l. to Federer).
Del Potro next will meet 11th-seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka, who converted three of 11 break points as he knocked out Jeremy Chardy of France 6-4, 7-5 in 97 minutes. Del Potro defeated Wawrinka two weeks ago in Rome, but the Swiss leads the head-to-head series 2-1.
"I think its going to be tougher than it was in Rome," said del Potro. "There he got off to a slow start and I think tomorrow we are going to have a very close game and it will be a long one, I’m pretty sure. When you play against the best players you need to have a strong serve which is one of the weapons that I have and that helps me to take advantage of the opportunities that come up in the game."
Former World No. 9 Wawrinka, who is currently No. 18 in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings, won his 16th match of the season – reflecting a consistent year for the right-hander, highlighted by defeating World No. 2 Roger Federer en route to reaching the semi-finals at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Monte-Carlo (l. to Djokovic).
Gilles Simon, the No. 8 seed from France, made smooth progress through to the third round with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over qualifier Fabio Fognini of Italy. The No. 72-ranked Fognini recovered from an initial break-of-serve deficit in the first set, but his respite was short-lived as Simon broke once more in the eighth game – aided by three double faults from Fognini – before closing out the one-set lead 6-3. Breaks were exchanged at the beginning of the second set before World No. 7 Simon upped his level to break twice more and win the last five games to wrap up victory in 71 minutes.
The 24-year-old Simon reached his first ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final last October on his debut in Madrid, when he finished runner-up to Andy Murray. The Nice native, who will next face Ivan Ljubicic for a place in the quarter-finals, has compiled an 18-12 match record on the season – highlighted by semi-final showings in Marseille (l. to Llodra) and Dubai (l. to Djokovic) and a first Grand Slam quarter-final at the Australian Open (l. to Nadal). Last week he was a quarter-finalist on clay in Estoril (l. to eventual champion Montanes).

12 May 2009 :

Djokovic Clinches Hometown Title

ATP World Tour No. 3 Novak Djokovic ended lucky loser Lukasz Kubot’s dream run at the inaugural Serbia Open as he won his hometown title in Belgrade with a 6-3, 7-6(0) victory over the Pole on Sunday in the final of the ATP World Tour 250 tennis tournament.
Victory for Djokovic boosts the Serbian’s chance of qualifying for the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals, where he is defending champion, as he earns 250 South African Airways 2009 ATP Ranking points and €75,500. Kubot receives 150 points and €39,700 and will rise to around No. 143 in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings.

The 21-year-old Djokovic was contesting his fourth consecutive ATP World Tour final, his fifth overall in 2009, and captured his second title of the season to join the trophy he collected on hard court in Dubai (d. Ferrer) in late February. The right-hander had reached three ATP World Tour Masters 1000 finals in his past three tournaments, finishing runner-up to World No. 4 Andy Murray on hard court in Miami and to No. 1 Rafael Nadal on the clay courts at Monte-Carlo and Rome.

"I won the first event that has ever been organised in our country, we must be proud of our organisation and we must be proud of the big picture that has been sent to the world," said Djokovic. "We are a small country, but this country has a lot of potential, a lot of good things and I think after this tournament the world will think only nice things about us.

"If we are looking at the category of the event (ATP World Tour 250 tournament) it’s not the biggest success I ever had, but it certainly is the most important win for me."

Djokovic made a confident start to his 22nd tour-level final, breaking twice in the second and sixth games to open up a 5-1 lead against first-time ATP World Tour finalist Kubot. The Pole, who was looking to become the first first-time winner on the ATP World Tour this year, rallied briefly and pegged Djokovic back at 5-3, but he could not recover the second break and Djokovic closed out the one-set lead 6-3.

World No. 179 Kubot, who would have been the lowest-ranked title winner on the ATP World Tour in 2009 had he succeeded, caused Djokovic and the Serbian tennis fans some concern in the second set as he twice led by a break of serve at 3-0 and 5-2. Both times Djokovic hit back though and once he forced a tie-break, the Pole had run out of answers and succumbed to the 2008 Australian Open champion 7-0 after one hour and 49 minutes.

"I had nothing to lose, but it was tough to play against Novak, especially because he was playing different than the other opponents before," said Kubot. "He was trying to play with me, to move me on the court and he didn’t go for big shots, winners. As long as he was playing the rallies against me, he was winning... He was more experienced in the end, in the tie-breaker in the second set, and then he won it.

"For me, it was an experience. It was very nice to play in Serbia because the crowd was supporting very fair, and it was very nice to play in a full house today."

Djokovic improved to a 13-9 lifetime mark in ATP World Tour finals; he won his first title as a 19 year old on clay in Amersfoort in July 2006 (d. Massu) and has won four titles in total on the crushed brick.

"Of course I felt pressure (throughout the week)," said Djokovic. "I was aware of the fact that most expectations are behind me and having the role of the main favourite to win the event is never easy. Under these circumstances I had to play against two Serbians in the first two matches. So there were a lot of things involved but I’m relieved in a way that I could mentally overcome these challenges and go all the way through."

The Monte-Carlo resident improved to a 34-10 match record on the season, the second best record (behind Rafael Nadal 38-3) on the ATP World Tour this year. In addition to reaching five ATP World Tour finals in the first five months of the season, Djokovic boasted semi-final showings at Sydney (l. to Nieminen) and Marseille (l. to Tsonga) and reached the quarter-finals at the Australian Open (ret. vs. Roddick) and ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (l. to Roddick).

The 26-year-old Kubot was the first Polish player to reach an ATP World Tour singles final since Wojtek Fibak in Basel on 16 October, 1983 (ret. vs. Gerulaitis) and was bidding to become the first Pole to win an ATP World Tour singles title since Fibak on 5 December, 1982 at WCT/Chicago - where he defeated American Bill Scanlon.

Having lost to Dominik Hrbaty in the final round of qualifying, the right-hander gained entry into an ATP World Tour main draw for just the second time this season when Steve Darcis withdrew with a shoulder injury and he raced through to the final without the loss of a set – including upsetting No. 2 seed Ivo Karlovic in the semi-finals.

The No. 1 Pole was looking to become the first lucky loser to win an ATP World Tour title since Ukrainian Sergiy Stakhovsky triumphed in Zagreb last March.

Djokovic Wins All-Serbian Match; Troicki Flies Home Flag In Belgrade

World No. 3 Novak Djokovic made a strong finish to his second-round opening match at the inaugural Serbia Open 2009, an ATP World Tour 250 tennis tournament, defeating fellow Belgrade-native Janko Tipsarevic 6-2, 4-6, 6-0 on Wednesday.
Djokovic failed to convert on his five break point opportunities in the second set and was broken once as Tipsarevic sent the match to a decisive set. Serbia’s top player then stepped up his game, dropping just four points on serve in the third set and capitalising on three of his six break points to close out the win in two hours.

The 21-year-old Djokovic, who improves to a 31-10 season record, has reached the finals in his past three tournament appearances. He finished runner-up to Andy Murray at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tennis tournament in Miami, and to Rafael Nadal at the clay-court events at Monte-Carlo and Rome. In February, he won his 12th ATP World Tour title by defeating David Ferrer in the Dubai final



Djokovic next goes to face another Belgrade-native, fifth seed Viktor Troicki, who advanced to his third ATP World Tour quarter-final of the season with a 6-4, 6-3 victory over Marcel Granollers. Troicki has won his one previous meeting against Djokovic, prevailing in a 7-5 third set two years ago at the clay-court tournament in Umag.

The 23-year-old Troicki enjoyed his best results at the start of the season, when he reached the quarter-finals in Auckland (l. to del Potro) and the semi-finals in Zagreb (l. to Cilic) before winning an ATP Challenger Tour event in his hometown (d. Hrbaty). The right-hander, who won his first clay-court match last week in Rome, improved to a 14-11 match record on the season.

Kristof Vliegen prevailed in an all-Belgian meeting to oust eighth seed Christophe Rochus 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 and reach his second quarter-final of the season. The 26-year-old Vliegen, formerly ranked No. 30 but currently No. 105 in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings, has a 5-7 match record on the season. Coming into the Serbia Open, the Maaseik native had not won an ATP World Tour main-draw match since reaching the quarter-finals in Johannesburg (l. to Tsonga).

Vliegen is bidding to reach his first semi-final since Halle (l. to Berdych) in June 2006 and will face Polish lucky loser Lukasz Kubot, who advanced when third-seeded Russian Igor Andreev retired with a rib injury trailing 2-3 in the first set of their second-round match. The No. 179-ranked Kubot gained entry into the draw when Steve Darcis withdrew with a shoulder injury and made the most of his opportunity by defeating Serbian wild card Arsenije Zlatanovic in straight sets to win just his second match of the season.

Remaining first-round action was completed on Wednesday. Italian qualifier Flavio Cipolla held his nerve to oust Cypriot wild card Marcos Baghdatis 1-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the first match of the day after play had been suspended at one-set all due to darkness on Tuesday evening. Argentine Brian Dabul set up a second-round meeting with No. 2 seed Ivo Karlovic after crushing Nicolas Massu 6-2, 6-1, while his compatriot Leonardo Mayer will challenge fourth seed Andreas Seppi after defeating Wayne Odesnik 6-3, 6-2.

Belgrade Hosts New Event In '09

Belgrade will stage Serbia's first ATP World Tour event this week at the SRPC Milan Gale Muskatirovic. The Serbia Open 2009, an ATP World Tour 250 event, will be played on outdoor clay.

World No. 3 Novak Djokovic headlines the inaugural main draw as the top seed in his hometown. The 21 year old could play compatriot Janko Tipsarevic in the second round, should Tipsarevic defeat Argentine Sergio Roitman. Fifth seed Viktor Troicki, also a Belgrade native, could be Djokovic’s challenger in the quarter-finals.

Nadal Clinches Record Fourth Rome Title

Reigning ATP World Tour Champion Rafael Nadal won a record fourth Internazionali BNL d’Italia title with a hard-fought 7-6(2), 6-2 victory over defending champion Novak Djokovic on Sunday at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tennis tournament in Rome.
Nadal is rewarded with 1000 South African Airways 2009 ATP Ranking points and €434,000, while defeat for World No. 3 Djokovic means that he will be surpassed in the Rankings by No. 4 Andy Murray on 11 May when the 2008 Rome points drop off.

The 22-year-old Nadal has now amassed a staggering 15 ATP World Tour Masters 1000 shields - second only (since 1990) to the now-retired Andre Agassi, who holds the record with 17 titles won during his illustrious 20-year career.

"[It is] one of the most important [titles] of my career," said Nadal. "[To] win in Rome is a big title. I have right now 15 Masters 1000 [wins] in my career, so that's a lot, and I'm very happy for that.

"[To] win here in Rome is always unbelievable. It's a very good tournament, and I am very happy for the victory. I am going to try my best in the next tournaments. Important thing for me right now I have 15 (Masters 1000 titles). It is a lot. Sure, I would love to have more than 17."

Victory marked Nadal’s 30th consecutive clay-court match win, including 16 wins in a row this season; his last loss on the surface came against Juan Carlos Ferrero in the Rome second round last year. During the span, he has won 71 of 75 sets and clinched four titles. Since 2005, Nadal has compiled an outstanding 147-4 match record on clay.


Watch match highlights,interviews and features from Rome


The Spaniard is currently seventh on the list of clay-court title leaders with 25 tour-level titles on the crushed brick. He is already over halfway to reaching Guillermo Vilas’ Open Era record of 45 triumphs.
In their second ATP World Tour final meeting in three weeks, Nadal was fast out of the blocks – breaking in the first game to stamp his authority early in the pair’s 17th meeting. However, two rare forehand errors from the Mallorcan when he served for the set at 5-4 brought Djokovic back into the set as he levelled at 5-5.
Djokovic failed to capitalise on his momentum and was immediately broken again by Nadal to trail 5-6. But the defending champion refused to relinquish the set without a continued fight and his persistence was rewarded as Nadal miss-hit a forehand to lose serve for the second time.
Six-time Grand Slam champion Nadal raised his level in the tie-break though and as he cut out his errors, Djokovic was unable to maintain his high-level of play and was made to pay the price as a failed drop shot trickled down his own side of the net to grant Nadal a hard-fought one-set lead.
The 21-year-old Djokovic produced more of the top form that saw him defeat Roger Federer in the semi-finals to stay on an even keel with Nadal early in the second set. But the Spaniard’s continued brilliance on the clay proved too hot for Djokovic to handle ultimately and he broke through in the sixth game as Djokovic double faulted under the pressure.
After two hours and three minutes of high-quality action, Nadal closed out his 13th victory over Djokovic with a second break of serve as he flicked a forehand pass up the line past the resigned Djokovic.
"Obviously it's his patience in the certain points (that is key)," Djokovic said. "When I needed to maybe stay a little bit more patient and just play the right shots I made some unforced errors. It happens a couple of times already on this surface that I'm close, and in the deciding moments he just overcomes the pressure better than me. But that's why he's the best in the world in this moment. Overall, I'm really happy with the week."
Nadal improved to a 22-1 event match record by clinching a record fourth Rome title. He previously won in 2005 and 2006 with epic five-set victories over Guillermo Coria and Roger Federer respectively, before winning his third successive title in the Italian capital with a straight-sets win over Fernando Gonzalez in 2007. Jaroslav Drobny (1950-52), Martin Mulligan (1963, ’65, ’67) and Thomas Muster (1990, ’95-96) are the others who have won three titles in Rome.
Nadal improved to an ATP World Tour-best 38-3 match record on the season after capturing his fifth tour-level title from six finals. He clinched his first hard-court Grand Slam title at the Australian Open with back-to-back five-set victories over Fernando Verdasco and Roger Federer before continuing his hard-court success at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 Indian Wells (d. Murray).
The left-hander then took his strong form into the European clay-court season, where he won the ATP World Tour Masters Monte-Carlo title (d. Djokovic) and Barcelona crown (d. Ferrer) for the fifth successive year.
"[Regardless] the result in Madrid and Roland Garros, the clay season is unbelievable. I'm very happy for everything. Sure it's a big surprise for me to win three titles in a row in three weeks. But I never did in the past, so it's a good thing for me to know I can do."
Nadal won his 36th tour-level title in his 45th final. He has 25-1 lifetime record in clay-court finals, with his lone loss coming to Roger Federer in the 2007 Hamburg final.
Djokovic was contesting his third consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final after finishing runner-up to Andy Murray in the Miami final and Nadal in Monte-Carlo. The Belgrade native, who will headline the inaugural event in his hometown next week, dropped to a 12-9 mark in tour-level finals. His most recent title, and his only one of the season, came in Dubai (l. to Ferrer) in February.
"I've been playing really well in the last three Masters 1000 events, and I'm really happy with the shape I'm in in this moment," said Djokovic. "Confidence is really important in this sport, in any sport. Right now I think I have good confidence. Hopefully I can continue with the successful tournament."
The right-hander captured the Rome title, his last at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 level, last year with victory over Stanislas Wawrinka in the title match

Djokovic Fights Back To Secure Final Spot; Faces Nadal

World No. 3 Novak Djokovic will have the opportunity to defend his Internazionali BNL d’Italia title after recovering from a set and a break down to oust two-time former finalist Roger Federer 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 on Saturday in the semi-finals of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournament in Rome.
In a repeat of the recent Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters final, Djokovic will take on three-time former champion Rafael Nadal after the top-ranked Spaniard rolled past Fernando Gonzalez 6-3, 6-3 later on Saturday.

It will be the first final between two Rome champions since 1978, when Bjorn Borg beat Italian Adriano Panatta in five sets.

"He's going to be the absolute favourite to win it again, but I have my chances, especially after the great performance in Monte-Carlo," said Djokovic. "I have no reason not to believe that I can win. I won a set against him in Monte-Carlo. I played really good start of the third set, and learned that I have to really play every point against him. So that's what I'm going to try to do tomorrow. Physically to prepare, to be ready to play long rallies, because that is what is happening when you play against him, and just wait for the chances."



Read about the Nadal-Djokovic Rivalry

Djokovic, who defeated Stanislas Wawrinka in the 2008 final, will contest his third consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final of the year after finishing runner-up to Andy Murray in Miami and Rafael Nadal in Monte-Carlo two weeks ago. The Serbian has four ATP World Tour Masters 1000 shields to his name, triumphing at Miami (d. Canas) and Montreal (d. Federer) in 2007 and at Indian Wells (d. Fish) and Rome last year.

Djokovic, Federer Blockbuster Set

Defending champion Novak Djokovic continued his sizzling run at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 level this year after dismissing World No. 5 Juan Martin del Potro 6-3, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia in Rome Friday. The Serb will next meet four-time ATP World Tour Champion Roger Federer, whom he defeated in the Miami semi-finals early last month.

Djokovic is now one win away from his third consecutive ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final. Two weeks ago he pushed ATP World Tour champion Rafael Nadal to three sets in the Monte-Carlo final and last month he fell to Andy Murray in the Miami final.

Djokovic, who is locked in a three-way battle with Roger Federer and Andy Murray for the No. 2 spot in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings (Read Story), has not dropped a set in three career meetings with del Potro.

The 21-year-old defending champion has not dropped a set this week. He needed only 61 minutes to defeat No. 13 seed Tommy Robredo 6-1, 6-1 on Thursday. He opened the tournament Tuesday with a 7-6(5), 6-0 victory over Spaniard Albert Montanes.



Djokovic said: “Today I tried to change the pace a lot, because I know that del Potro likes more or less the same pace, and he's moving really well for his height. I knew that I had to move him, left/right, try to be patient, and go for the little longer rallies and a little more spin into the balls. That's what I did. I think I've played well. It's a good win for me. I'm ready for next challenge."

Of being the defending champion, Djokovic said: “You have some certain pressure and responsibility. It's a bit difficult to defend a title and all these points. I think I've been doing quite a good job until now.”

Federer, a Rome finalist in 2003 and 2006, advanced to the semi-finals with a 7-6(3), 6-2 win over German qualifier Mischa Zverev.

Federer withstood an early challenge from Zverev, who was willing to approach the net on a regular basis. Saving both break points he faced, Zverev was able to force the first set to a tie-break before Federer, who did not face a break point in the match, finished strongly to close out a 7-6(3), 6-2 win after hitting 36 winners.

Since winning his first ATP World Tour title in February 2001 in Milan, Federer has never failed to win a title in the first four months of the season until this year. The 14-time ATP World Tour Masters 1000 champion reached the Australian Open final in January, losing a five-set battle to Rafael Nadal. He also reached the semi-finals in Doha, Indian Wells and Miami.

Federer leads Djokovic 7-3 in career meetings and has won their two outings on clay. Djokovic, who rallied from a set down to beat Federer in Miami last month, has never beaten the Swiss two consecutive times.

Federer paid credit to Zverev for his performance in the first set: “He was playing well I thought from the start. He served some good serves, and made it easy for him to hold in the beginning. Made it hard for me to get the break… It was a pity I couldn't make the forehand on set point at 5-4, I think it was. But then I played a great breaker and I played well after that, so it was a perfect match for me. I was happy with my match.”

The Swiss said he looked forward to his meeting with Djokovic. “We haven't had each other that much on clay. Seems like he's playing well again. He came through very convincing against good players, so I expect a good match. I hope I can play better than in Miami.”

Djokovic Passes Opening Test

Defending champion Novak Djokovic came through a tight opening set against Spaniard Albert Montanes before advancing with a 7-6(5), 6-0 victory on a rain-hit Tuesday at Internazionali BNL d’Italia, an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tennis tournament in Rome.
Montanes held his own with the World No. 3 through the first set as both players capitalised on two of their break point chances, but came up short in the tie-break. Similar to his three-set win over the 33rd-ranked Montanes two weeks ago at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament in Monte-Carlo, Djokovic then blanked his opponent in the decisive set, limiting the Spaniard to just four points on serve.

The 21-year-old Djokovic is looking to reach his third straight ATP World Tour Masters 1000 final after runner-up finishes at Miami (l. to Murray) and Monte-Carlo (l. to Nadal). The Serbian won the Rome title last year with victory over Swiss No. 2 Stanislas Wawrinka in the final.

Djokovic In Awesome Form

Defending champion Novak Djokovic was in awesome form on Thursday as he dismantled two-time 2009 ATP World Tour title-winner Tommy Robredo 6-1, 6-1 to reach the quarter-finals of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 clay-court tournament in Rome.
The No. 3-ranked Djokovic took advantage of a below-par performance from Robredo to stun the Spaniard with six breaks of serve in the 63-minute clash. Robredo won just 34 per cent of points behind serve, while Djokovic commanded 63 per cent of points on his serve. The impressive Serb won nearly twice as many points (63-35) as his opponent and improved to a 28-9 match record in 2009.

"I was in control of the match," said Djokovic. "I think I played quite patient, but then when I needed to step it up I did. It was quite strange because Tommy was making a lot of unforced errors, so he didn't put a lot of pressure on me."

The 21-year-old Djokovic, who defeated Stanislas Wawrinka to triumph in Rome last year, has gathered pace in recent weeks on the ATP World Tour. He reached the finals in his past two outings at ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tennis tournaments in Monte-Carlo (l. to Nadal) and Miami (l. to Murray) and won his 12th tour-level title in Dubai (d. Ferrer) at the end of February.

However, the Belgrade native remains under pressure in the South African Airways 2009 ATP Rankings from Andy Murray, who could overtake the Serb at No. 4 on 11 May, dependent on results this week.

"I have been playing really well in the last two or three months regardless who is in front and who is behind me," commented Djokovic. "I just focus on my game, and I've been playing really well. Let's see if I can keep it up."

There will be no repeat of the 2008 Rome final for Djokovic after World No. 5 Juan Martin del Potro defeated Swiss No. 10 seed Wawrinka 6-2, 6-7(5), 6-3. Wawrinka rallied from a break down in the second set to level the match, but was unable to complete the comeback as del Potro broke once in the deciding set to secure victory after two hours and 50 minutes.

The 20-year-old del Potro, who captured his first two ATP World Tour titles on clay last year, notched his 21st match win of the season (21-6 record). The Tandil native won his fifth ATP World Tour title in Auckland (d. Querrey) at the start of the season and defeated World No. 1 Rafael Nadal to reach the semi-finals of the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami (l. to Murray).

World No. 13 Fernando Gonzalez clinched his spot in the quarter-finals with a battling 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory over Austrian Jurgen Melzer earlier in the day.

In a keenly fought contest on Stadio Pietrangeli, Gonzalez rallied from a one-set deficit to break serve once in each of the second and third sets to secure the third-round victory in one hour and 54 minutes – levelling his career record with Melzer at 2-2.