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Djokovic beats Tsonga for third China Open title
Novak Djokovic defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6 6-2 to win the 2012 China Open title.
In the opening set they traded breaks and then went into the tie breaker which Nole won to take the lead in the final.
In the second set, the former world number 1 broke twice to claim the title.
“I think the first set was really even, and maybe a couple points decided the winner there," said Djokovic.
"We both had our chances aside those breaks that we converted…I managed to hold my nerves in the end. When you're getting to the second set with the set advantage, mentally it is much more encouraging for you and then you try to play on that confidence run that you have. I made that early break in the second [and] I felt much more comfortable on the court.”
Djokovic, who also won the China Open in 2009 and 2010, earned $530,570 in prize money .
He will remain in the hunt to take back the world number one ranking from Roger Federer at the end of the year.
That's the target. This will definitely help me in that race, but it's still quite open. There are still tournaments to come, big ones. Shanghai, obviously the first 1000 event that is next week. I want to try to get as far as I can in the tournament, obviously taking one match at a time as I always do.”
"I think it was a good match," Tsonga said. "I missed maybe something in the middle of the first set. I was a break up and I was playing well but then he played solid. It was really difficult to control him.
"I just tried to play my game, to be aggressive, but against a player like this, for the moment, my level is not high enough and it's not enough to beat him."
“I'm happy because I played good tennis here. It was a great tournament for me. I hope I will continue to improve like this and I will try another time to beat these guys next week.”
Photo by REUTERS/Jason Lee
