Novak Djokovic stormed back from a set down for the second time this week as he ousted Andrey Rublev to reach the Rolex Paris Masters final. The world No 1 called the physio and received treatment on his back after forcing a decider. But he was still able to compete the comeback, winning 5-7 7-6(3) 7-5.
Rublev was back on court 16 hours after beating Alex de Minaur as he faced Djokovic for a spot in the final. The fifth seed had already aired his grievances with the schedule when he finished his previous match at 12:59pm, explaining that he wouldn’t get to sleep until 4 or 5am and sarcastically telling TV cameras: “Crazy. Amazing schedule. Thank you. And I’m council of ATP and ATP, we are together.”
The late-night finish looked as though it would affect the Russian when he was broken to start the match. But he quickly put any concerns to bed when he came out on top following a 10-minute game to break straight back and draw level at 1-1. A six-time champion in Bercy, Djokovic was in danger when he faced triple break point in the eighth game of the match but he managed to serve himself out of trouble.
He couldn’t keep the 26-year-old down for long as Rublev pounced again with Djokovic serving to stay in the match at 5-6. The world No 5 had another break point – this time a set point – and he took it after an uncharacteristic mistake from the 24-time Grand Slam champion when one of his returns failed to reach the net, falling in his half of the court. It was full steam ahead for Rublev early in the second set as he continued to apply pressure on the top seed, forcing Djokovic to save another break point.
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As he so often does, the 36-year-old started to raise his level after finding himself in trouble and it was his turn to take a 0-40 lead on the Rublev serve but the 14-time title winner reeled off five straight points to deny Djokovic the break. Rublev continued to dominate the longer rallies and kept the world No 1 at bay as he saved another break point en route to a tiebreak where Djokovic went into another gear, securing two mini-breaks to take it 7-6(3) and force a decider.
There was concern, however, as the top seed asked to see the trainer when he returned from an off-court bathroom break. But Djokovic quickly tamed any fears, starting the final set with a love-hold before creating two break point chances in the fourth game – both saved by the 26-year-old. It was Rublev’s turn to serve to stay in the match at 4-5 in the decider after Djokovic kept himself alive in the second set.
Sensing an opportunity, the top seed turned up the heat – correctly challenging Rublev’s first serve and perfectly finding the line with a backhand winner to take the first point. The Russian was on the brink of defeat as he sent a ball flying long, putting Djokovic two points from victory. But once again, under pressure, he won four straight points to stay in it.
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Rublev faced the same test at 5-6, going 0-30 down while trying to stay alive in the tournament. This time, Djokovic was able to set up two break points with a 15-40 lead. After such a strong mental display throughout, Rublev lost the match on a double fault – throwing his racket to the ground.
It means that Djokovic is through to a ninth final at the Paris Masters where Grigor Dimitrov awaits. The world No 17 will be contesting just his second Masters final more than six years after winning his first in Cincinnati. Djokovic has a dominant 11-1 record against Dimitrov with his only loss coming at the 2013 Madrid Masters.
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