Novak Djokovic triumphed in Athens and became the oldest tournament winner in the history of the ATP tour.
In a high-class final, the 38-year-old won against the Italian Lorenzo Musetti 2:6, 6:3, 7:5. At 38 years and five months, the Serb replaced Frenchman Gaël Monfils, who was a month younger when he won in Auckland this year.
Djokovic, who celebrated the 101st title of his career in his adopted home of Athens, was initially challenged by Musetti, especially on his serve. In the first set, a break from the Italian made the difference to make it 2-1. The 23-year-old was not deterred by the Greek fans, who supported the local hero Djokovic.
Djokovic is fighting back
In the second set, the Grand Slam record champion braced himself against the impending defeat: with some spectacular rescue actions, the “Djoker” caused applause several times and finally got the decisive break to make it 5:3 with a clever defense at the net. In the third set, too, the Serb was ahead 2:1 and 4:3 after an interim break. But Musetti held on and equalized to 5:5. After almost three hours, Djokovic converted his first match point.
The old master moved from his homeland to the Greek capital around two months ago. For the first time since the ATP Finals 2023, Djokovic won a hardcourt tournament again.
ATP Finals: Musetti there thanks to Djokovic
Musetti would have actually missed qualifying for the ATP Finals due to the defeat, but then benefited from the withdrawal of his final opponent. The ATP announced that Djokovic had canceled his participation in the prestigious tournament starting on Sunday in Turin due to a shoulder injury. Musetti, ninth in the world rankings, can take the place.
The Italian will be competing in a group with Carlos Alcaraz (Spain), Taylor Fritz (USA) and Alex de Minaur (Australia). Alexander Zverev is also there in Turin. The German tennis star will meet the American Ben Shelton at the start of the Björn Borg Group on Sunday (8.30 p.m.).