LONDON: Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer prepared to face off for a place in the last four of the ATP Finals on Thursday after Matteo Berrettini made history with a consolation win in London.
The heavyweights, who have won the season-ending tournament 11 times between them, will meet for the 49th time in a repeat of this year’s Wimbledon final.
Djokovic, who holds a 26-22 advantage, has won their past five meetings, including their epic five-set battle in the final at Wimbledon in July, during which he saved two championship points.
The Serbian is bidding to equal Federer’s record of six ATP Finals titles and is also challenging Rafael Nadal for the year-end number one ranking.
The second seed, 32, will leapfrog Nadal to finish in the top spot if he wins the title at the O2 Arena and Nadal does not reach the final.
The Serbian, who can claim a record-equalling sixth year-end number one finish, is hungry to finish the year on top.
“One of the two biggest achievements that you can have as a professional competitive tennis player is winning a Grand Slam and being number one in the world at the end of the season,” he said before the tournament started.
Federer was asked earlier this week whether the Wimbledon defeat had left emotional or mental scars.
“We’ll find out, but I think it’s all flushed away from my side,” said the 38-year-old. “A lot of water has gone under the bridge since then.”
He added: “Actually, it’s good for me to play him again, and maybe that all helps to get a chance to get him back or whatever it is, but at the end of the day, I’m here for the World Tour Finals and not because of the Wimbledon finals.”
In Thursday’s early match in Group Bjorn Borg, which was a dead rubber, eighth seed Berrettini beat Austria’s Dominic Thiem 7-6 (7/3), 6-3.
In doing so, the 23-year-old became the first Italian to win a match at the season-ending championships.
Berrettini finished with a 1-2 record this week. Thiem had already qualified for the semifinals after his win on Tuesday against Djokovic.
Berrettini arrived in London at a career-high number eight in the ATP rankings after starting the season outside of the top 50.
“I always had great fights against (Thiem),” said the Italian. “I was able to stay mentally focused, especially in the first set.
“I played a great tie-break, so I’m very happy with my performance.”
Fifth-seed Thiem did not hit the heights he reached during his three-set win against Djokovic, notching just 12 winners compared with 50 against the Serbian.
Stefanos Tsitsipas has already qualified for the semifinals from Group Andre Agassi, leaving Nadal, defending champion Alexander Zverev and Daniil Medvedev to scrap it out for the other spot on Friday.
Djokovic, Federer set for ATP Finals showdown after Berrettini win
Djokovic, Federer set for ATP Finals showdown after Berrettini win
Rabiot double lifts Milan after early scare at Como
- Milan are second in the standings on 43 points, three behind rivals Inter Milan and three clear of Napoli in third, while Como are sixth with 34 points
COMO, Italy: AC Milan came from behind to earn a 3-1 victory at Como on Thursday, with Adrien Rabiot scoring twice to keep the away side in the Serie A title race.
Milan are second in the standings on 43 points, three behind rivals Inter Milan and three clear of Napoli in third, while Como are sixth with 34 points.
Como made the brighter start and took the lead after 10 minutes when Marc-Oliver Kempf rose to head home a corner.
Despite the hosts controlling much of the first half, Milan struck in stoppage time as Christopher Nkunku calmly converted from the penalty spot after Kempf was penalized for pushing Rabiot.
Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan produced a series of strong saves to keep Como at bay after the break before Milan took the lead in the 55th minute when Rabiot knocked the ball in from close range.
Como were denied an equalizer as Nico Paz saw his effort from outside the box crash against the crossbar. Milan then sealed the win two minutes from time when Rabiot caught the Como defense off guard with a low strike from distance that crept into the bottom corner.
“This was a team victory, we showed our mentality,” Rabiot told DAZN after being named Man of the Match.
“We suffered a lot in the first half, but we talked during the break, came out with a different mentality, we all came out fighting for the three points.
“We gave something extra and I am very happy to score two goals, obviously, but above all I’m pleased with the mentality of the team.”
While Rabiot provided the goals, another Frenchman, goalkeeper Maignan, made his mark with a string of crucial saves.
“We knew that playing here would be difficult, we were well-prepared. We started a little sluggish and they scored, but we managed to keep the game open, and then all together started to play as a team,” Maignan said.
“We know these are great nights for Milan with an atmosphere like this. We suffered, we used up a lot of energy and left it all on the field.”
