Djokovic Ties Another Record, Extends Big Titles Lead

Novak Djokovic continues to etch his name in the record books. The Serbian tied Roger Federer's record of six Nitto ATP Finals titles on Sunday in Turin.

The 35-year-old again extended his lead in the 'Big Titles' race when he defeated Casper Ruud 7-5, 6-3 in the championship match at the Pala Alpitour. He now owns 65 'Big Titles', which are 

trophies at a Grand Slam championship, the Nitto ATP Finals, an ATP Masters 1000 tournament or an Olympic singles gold medal.

Djokovic owns six more 'Big Titles' than any other player in history, with longtime rival Rafael Nadal (59) his closest competitor. Outside of Djokovic, Nadal and Federer (54), no other player holds more than 30 of the prestigious crowns (Pete Sampras, 30).

The Serbian first triumphed at the year-end championships in 2008, when the tournament was called the Tennis Masters Cup. Djokovic has obliterated the record of biggest gap between first and most recent Nitto ATP Finals titles at 14. Before his win Sunday, the previous record belonged to Sampras and Federer, who lifted their first and last season finale trophies eight years apart.

Djokovic triumphed in Turin without losing a set, earning a record $4,740,300 in prize money. He lost just one set en route to the title, claiming victories against Stefanos Tsitsipas, Andrey Rublev, Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz and Ruud.

Djokovic's 'Big Title' win rate holds steady at one trophy for every 3.2 events played (65/209), while Nadal has claimed one 'Big Title' for every 3.5 tournaments he has played (59/207). The only other players who have won a 'Big Title' at a greater rate than once per five events played are Federer (4.4, 54/240) and Pete Sampras (4.9, 30/147).

Current and Former Champions' Big Titles Won (Records Since 1990)

Player	Grand Slams	Nitto ATP Finals	1000s	Total^ (Avg)
Novak Djokovic	21/67	6/15	38/123	65/209 (3.2)
Rafael Nadal	22/66	0/11	36/128	59/207 (3.5)
Roger Federer	20/80	6/17	28/138	54/240 (4.4)
Pete Sampras	14/52	5/11	11/83	30/147 (4.9)
Andre Agassi	8/61	1/13	17/90	27/164 (6.1)
Andy Murray	3/55	1/8	14/109	20/175 (8.8)
Boris Becker*	2/26	2/6	5/51	9/84 (9.3)
Thomas Muster	1/29	0/4	8/53	9/87 (9.7)
Stefan Edberg**	3/28	0/4	4/45	7/79 (11.3)
Gustavo Kuerten	3/33	1/3	5/67	9/105 (11.6)
Jim Courier	4/38	0/4	5/71	9/114 (12.6)
Marcelo Rios	0/26	0/1	5/56	5/84 (16.8)
Marat Safin	2/41	0/3	5/87	7/133 (19)
Michael Chang***	0/50	0/6	7/86	7/144 (20.6)
Andy Roddick	1/46	0/6	5/75	6/129 (22.5)

^ Includes Olympic Games gold medals and tournament participations
* Becker's four other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.
** Edberg's three other Grand Slam titles came before 1990.
*** Chang's one Grand Slam title came before 1990

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Sustainability Is The Name Of The Game At The 2022 Nitto ATP Finals

The Nitto ATP Finals Fan Village is a hub where spectators can relax before and after taking in the intense on-court action, but it also provides the opportunity to discover more about title sponsor Nitto’s exciting sustainability initiatives.

Leg-powered and arm-powered energy-generating bikes have been set up in the Nitto booth, encouraging fans to have a go at producing their own power to gain a greater understanding of what is required to generate clean, sustainable energy. The reward for fans who generate five watts of energy on the bikes is a coin to slot into the nearby giant Gashapon for a prize.

One such fan trying out the arm-powered generators at the Nitto booth was Razvan Constantin. The Rafael Nadal fan from Romania was impressed with the energy-generating bikes that demonstrate the importance of electric power.

“It’s interesting, because they produce energy, and it is very good,” said Constantin, who was in the fan village after watching Nadal defeat Casper Ruud at the Pala Alpitour. “It is something new and very good, so why not? You can also [produce electricity] for bulbs for your home and things like this, so it’s very interesting.”

^{Photo Credit: Siobhan Hennessy}
Standing near to the bikes is another attraction set up by Nitto to promote sustainability, the Future Wish Tree. Fans can hang messages on the tree containing their wishes for the future of Earth and society.

For the second consecutive year, the rubbish bins installed at the fan village are powered by solar panels to compress the waste inside and manage their capacity. These bins are revolutionary in terms of efficiency of waste management, and they also contribute to raising awareness of waste separation among fans visiting the venue.

^{Photo Credit: Siobhan Hennessy}
Nitto is spreading the word about sustainability beyond the tournament venue, too. At Turin’s Hotel NH Torino Piazza Carlina, Nitto showcases some of its products being recognised as friendly to the environment and human life. The Nitto Group has a long history of contributing to the improvement of the global environment and society, through customer-oriented innovation.

Now Nitto created a new recognition scheme for its products, which certifies the positive contributions those products offer to the global environment and planet, PlanetFlags™, or to an improvement of people’s lifestyle, HumanFlags™.

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Novak Djokovic ties Roger Federer record by beating Casper Ruud for sixth ATP Finals title

Novak Djokovic ended his season on a high by lifting a record-equalling sixth trophy at the ATP Finals.

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Novak Djokovic was left surprised by Casper Ruud secret before setting up ATP Finals clash

Novak Djokovic takes on Casper Ruud with the ATP Finals title on the line.

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Rublev: 'I Hope I Can Take A Great Lesson Out Of This Match'

Andrey Rublev suffered a devastating defeat Saturday evening against Casper Ruud in the semi-finals of the Nitto ATP Finals. However, the three-time season finale qualifier leaves Turin with a positive attitude.

“Of course, there [are] a lot of positive things to take. I can be grateful for the week. I [made the] semi-final. I was here. We're the best eight players. All the players are dreaming to play here, and I was part of it,” Rublev said. “The rest of the players, they're not here, so obviously it’s better to be here and to lose every match than not to be here at all. I did semis for the first time, I'm happy.”

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Rublev entered the clash with a 4-1 ATP Head2Head advantage against Ruud. His only previous defeat to the Norwegian came in a final-set tie-break last year at the Pala Alpitour.

On this occasion, it did not go the 25-year-old’s way. Ruud converted all four of his break points to triumph after 69 minutes.

“I hope I can take a great lesson out of this match. We'll see. We'll see. Now I have great time to improve, so we'll see how it's going to be for Australia,” Rublev said. “I'm really excited for the next season. I'm motivated, especially now finishing this week being more stable than usual, winning some matches that normally I would not win before.”

Rublev defeated two former Nitto ATP Finals champions — Daniil Medvedev and Stefanos Tsitsipas — to claim his first semi-final berth at the year-end championships. In his first two appearances, Rublev went 1-2 in round-robin play. Ruud was simply too good in the knockout stages.

“I think I started quite well, and then, I don't know, Casper was just too good. He played really well, really solid. Since the beginning he [played at a] high level. That's it,” Rublev said. “When I lost my serve, I started to rush a bit. I was trying to play aggressive, rushing. I started to miss more and more.

“It's tough when he [had], I don't know, almost 80 per cent first-serve serving 215. It's tough to do something. Then when the match was almost done, when I managed to relax a bit and I was keep playing aggressive, but I was not rushing, I managed to start to play better. It was too late. But he was too good. Nothing to say.”

SF Highlights: Ruud vs Rublev

The No. 7 player in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, Rublev won 50 tour-level matches for the second consecutive year (51-20) and lifted four trophies in a season for the second time, triumphing in Marseille, Dubai, Belgrade and Gijon. Despite the quiet end to his campaign, Rublev is excited to work towards an even bigger 2023.

“I’m positive,” Rublev said. “And I'm really excited and motivated for the next season.”

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Pitch Perfect, String Quartet Hitting The Right Notes In Turin

Fans have been treated to dramatic three-set matches at the Nitto ATP Finals this week, with Novak Djokovic and Casper Ruud among those producing their best in Turin.

However, the players are not the only ones who have been putting on a show at the Pala Alpitour. Krystal Kuartet, an electric string group from Bologna, have lit up the Pala Alpitour with their pitch-perfect performances before each singles match.

For violinists Ilaria Coratti and Altea Saraceni, the experience of playing in front of more than 10,000 fans each session has been memorable.

“I had a range of feelings before playing,” Coratti said. “We were nervous. But then we were really excited when [we] started [playing], with all the crowds screaming at us. It is a performance for us. It is a joy for us.”

“It is really amazing because you enter the arena and all the people are watching you and it is very impressive,” Saraceni added.

_{^{Photo Credit: Corinne Dubreuil/ATP Tour}}

 Nitto ATP Finals Tournament Director Adam Hogg said: “I think the key for us is that the event has built a reputation for innovation, technology, moving forward, market-leading in terms of how we present the sport. But it is also [about] blending that with the location where we are, and that’s the crux of what we’re trying to do.

“You see Italian influence, whether it be through the contrast between different elements of Italian culture and the professionalism required to be an elite athlete in terms of performance, dedication, skill and time spent at your craft and the like. [It is about] combining that element of Italianism and culture, but also with elite modern sport.”

Coratti and Saraceni revealed the group, which also includes violinists Greta Rondelli and Viviana Marzolo, practises for five hours a day to ensure they deliver their best when they step on court to perform. The pair has enjoyed being part of the prestigious year-end event and have loved watching the tennis, rewarding themselves for their incredible performances by cheering on the players.

“We have seen some matches and we love it so much,” said Saraceni, who used to play tennis before turning her focus to music. “It is a really important event and Turin is really grateful to have this competition in this city.”

“It is different as we usually play for private events [such as] birthday parties and weddings,” Coratti said. “Sometimes we play at sporting events. We went to play at an MMA event in Bahrain as well. But this is bigger.”

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The Best Photos From Day 7 In Turin

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