The Sports Lowdown For All Your News and OpinionsNovak Djokovic has captured the Shanghai Masters title after the world number one produced yet another dominant performance to cruise past Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 6-2 6-4. The Frenchman had defeated Rafael Nadal in the semis but he could not cope with the precise display from Djokovic, as the Serbian added another title to his glittering season.
In the first set, Djokovic made a blistering start as he gained the break in the opening game of the match when Tsonga netted a volley. The combination of Djokovic’s sharp play and the Frenchman having to force the issue meant that the Serbian was on the front foot, as the world number one quickly broke again following another error from Tsonga. Even though the Frenchman fought back well to retrieve one break, Djokovic immediately responded to regain the double break advantage and he continued the onslaught, taking his opponent apart with ruthless efficiency and accuracy. The world number one was overall clinical and the set was emphatically wrapped up when the Frenchman’s backhand return drifted wide.
As the second set unfolded, Djokovic continued to pressurise his opponent for the break throughout, but this time Tsonga stood firm and produced a series of powerful serves to eventually hold. The world number one kept rattling through his own service games, as the remarkable depth on his groundstrokes consistently allowed him to dictate and manoeuvre his opponent around in the baseline rallies. Even though the Frenchman displayed incredible resilience and great shot-making at times to keep Djokovic at bay, finally at 4-4 the Serbian’s relentless pressure told when Tsonga was forced into a double fault to gift the crucial break. The world number one was left serving for the match, and he maintained his composure to close out a comfortable victory.
