Djoko beats Rune to end year as No. 1

Novak Djokovic holds the year-end No. 1 trophy. Pic/AFP

Novak Djokovic will finish the year as World No. 1 for a record-extending eighth time after beating Holger Rune 7-6 (7/4), 6-7 (1/7), 6-3 in his opening match at the ATP Finals on Sunday. The 24-time Grand Slam champion needed just one win or a defeat for young rival Carlos Alcaraz in order to secure top spot in the ATP rankings for 2023 and prevailed in a three-hour Green Group clash with spirited debutant Rune.

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Djokovic, on a run of 19 straight wins, has had an age-defying year, winning three Slams to become the all-time record winner of major titles. The 36-year-old came into the Finals in Turin off the back of his seventh triumph at the Paris Masters, his 40th victory at a Masters 100 event.

Those are two more records to add to a long and growing list for Djokovic, who is hunting a seventh Finals title which would take him one ahead of retired great Roger Federer. "It means a lot. You could see that there were a lot of emotions on the court," said Djokovic. "I could feel it, I was very eager to win the match and get that monkey off my back. Obviously a big objective, a big goal has been achieved, everything else now is a bonus."

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