Chasing his 39th Masters 1000 crown, Novak Djokovic suffered a narrow 3-6, 6-3, 7-5 loss to Holger Rune in two hours and 32 minutes. Novak lost ten break points out of 12, six in the last game of the match.
The Serb struggled with a minor left thigh problem in the final set, receiving a massage but fighting until the very end. Novak didn’t want to talk about it, taking nothing away from the rival’s victory.
Djokovic took the upper hand in the opening set, beating the rival once and closing in on the finish line after 36 minutes. Rune survived break points early in the second set and earned a boost.
He got the first break point in game two after Novak’s loose forehand and grabbed it after another loose forehand from a six-time champion. Holger held after two points in game three to confirm the advantage and served well for the rest of the set to stay ahead.
Novak Djokovic at the Paris Masters:
Holger Rune defeated Novak Djokovic in the Paris Masters final. The Dane concluded the set with a zero grip in the ninth game, playing well and forcing a tiebreak after an hour and 20 minutes.
Both players served well in the first three games before Djokovic broke at 15 in game four after Rune double faulted. Novak squandered a play point at 3-1 and lost an extended rally after Holger’s forehand cross winner was broken.
The Serb received a massage to his left thigh during the break, and the Dane locked the result at 3 all with an ace in the sixth game. Rune needed two points to conclude the eighth game, staying calm and leveling the score at 4 all over for more drama.
The more experienced player secured the ninth game at 15 and the youngster served to stay in the game. Feeling no pressure, Holger held at 15 with a booming serve and hit a 5-all ready to fight until the end.
Djokovic cracked under pressure in the eleventh game and lost serve after a massive forehand error that put Rune 6-5 ahead. The Dane served for the title in the twelfth game and faced six break points!
He turned them down despite an apparent struggle and forced the rival’s error for his second match point. Holger grabbed it to defeat a six-time champion and start a massive celebration, lifting his first Masters 1000 trophy and breaking into the top 10 the next day.
“I don’t want to talk about it because I know you can take it as an excuse for my defeat or something like that. Everything was fine physically. When you play day in and day out, it’s normal to have tightness here and there, but I wasn’t hurt.
I fought until the last moment, but it wasn’t for me today” Novak Djokovic said.
