The numbers don’t lie. Over the course of a brisk one hour and seven minutes, Novak Djokovic struck 20 winners, made just six unforced errors and did not face a single break point as he crushed Andrey Rublev 6-4, 6-1 to book a place in the last four of the ATP Finals in Turin.
After a troubled season, Djokovic is finally in a good place. Cheered on by his wife Jelena and their two children, Stefan and Tara, who chose a good moment to watch their father play a complete match for the first time, Djokovic delivered what he described as a “flawless” second-set performance. The Serb is playing with an authority and assurance that augurs well for his bid to equal Roger Federer’s record of six wins at the season-ending showpiece.
Better yet, he has been given the green light to compete at the Australian Open after his three-year visa ban was overturned by the Labor government. Djokovic, who was deported from Australia in January over fears that he might be “perceived by some as a talisman of a community of anti-vaccine sentiment” because of his refusal to be inoculated against Covid, was informed of the decision on Tuesday.
Uplifted by the reprieve, Djokovic, who would draw level with Rafael Nadal on 22 grand slams were he to win a 10th title at Melbourne Park, admitted he had an extra spring in his step ahead of Wednesday’s meeting with Rublev. That was bad news for the Russian, who matched the former world No 1 step for step until the 10th game of the match only to suffer a momentary loss of concentration – after which he won just one more game.
“It was a relief, obviously, knowing what I and people closest to me in my life have been through this year with what happened in Australia, and post-Australia,” said Djokovic, whose unvaccinated status also prevented him from entering the US for the sunshine swing and the US Open.
“I could not receive better news, for sure – during this tournament as well. Did it affect my game today? I would like to believe it did.
“Knowing that I have clarity now, what I do in the off-season, starting the season in Australia, also of course did relieve some of the pressure me and my team felt. Just giving that clarity makes it great for us.
“The Australian Open has been my most successful grand slam. I made some of the best memories there. Of course, I want to go back there, I want to play tennis, do what I do best, hopefully have a great Australian summer.”
While it remains to be seen how Djokovic will be received by the Australian public following his unsuccessful attempt to fight the revocation of his visa in the federal court, the 35-year-old’s relatively light schedule this year should ensure he goes into next season in good fettle.
“The upside of not playing many tournaments is that you’re going to be fresher than when you’re playing a lot more,” said Djokovic.
“At the same time, it was a very unusual year for me in terms of my season. I missed some big tournaments, two out of four slams.
“To be able to play as well I am playing in the last few months is something I’m very thankful for and I worked hard for, because I had more time to train, to practise.”
Djokovic will face Daniil Medvedev in his final Red Group match on Friday with only points and prize money at stake for both men. Medvedev, the world No 5, was eliminated after losing a final-set tiebreak for a second successive match as Stefanos Tsitsipas, the Greek second seed, prevailed 6-3, 6-7 (9-11), 7-6 (7-1) in the battle of former champions.
The Russian, who came out on the wrong end of a similarly epic tussle with Rublev on the opening day in Turin, fought back from three match points down in the second-set to lead 5-3 in the decider. Tsitsipas, however, came storming back to consign Medvedev to his seventh consecutive defeat against a top-10 player.
“It means I was not good enough, and I have to be better,” said Medvedev.
Tsitsipas, who won the title in London on his debut in 2019, will meet Rublev on Friday to decide who advances from the group alongside Djokovic.