MOSCOW, November 6 (R-Sport) – Novak Djokovic won his opening match at the $8.85 million World Tour Finals in London, defeating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in two sets.
The World No. 1, who failed to make it out of round robin stage last year, beat the Frenchman for the fifth time in this season, grabbing a 7-6(4), 6-3 win on Monday.
“To be quite honest, he was the better player throughout the first set,” Djokovic was quoted as saying by the ATP website.
“I faced many break points, and I didn't have any in the opening set. I managed to serve well, play well, stay mentally tough, and tried to fight my way through.”
Djokovic had to save three break points to take the first set on a tie break before dominating in the second, where he lost only two points on his serve.
“It's more he's taking his chances all the time, and me, I miss on big points,” Tsonga said after the match. “The next match will be really important for me.”
Djokovic next plays his U.S. Open final tormentor Andy Murray, and Tsonga plays Tomas Berdych, on Wednesday.
Group B kicks off later Tuesday featuring a clash between six-time champion Roger Federer and Serbia’s Janko Tipsarevic, followed Spain’s David Ferrer versus Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina.
