Novak Djokovic and Viktor Troicki beat Pablo Carreno Busta and Feliciano Lopez 6-3 6-4 after 75 minutes to clinch the title in the inaugural edition of the ATP Cup at the Ken Rosewall Arena in Perth. Serbia beat 2019 Davis Cup champions Spain 2-1 to lift the trophy after coming back from the defeat of Dusan Lajovic against Roberto Bautista Agut in the opening singles match.
Djokovic and Troicki went down a break to trail 1-3 in the fourth game of the opening set but they bounced back by winning five consecutive games to win the first set 6-3. Djokovic dropped serve in the first game after an error from Troicki at the net. Lopez held serve at love to open up a 2-0 lead for Spain. Serbia broke serve in the sixth game to draw level to 3-3. Carreno Busta was broken after sending a backhand long, as he was serving at 3-4. Djokovic held serve at love in the ninth game to close out the opening set 6-3.
Serbia earned an early break at the start of the second set. Djokovic fended off a break point in the sixth game before holding at love to close out the match, as he was serving for the match.
Earlier today Djokovic beat Rafael Nadal 6-2 7-6 (7-4) forcing the tie to the decisive doubles match. In the first match Roberto Bautista Agut gave Spain a 1-0 lead with a 7-5 6-1 win over Dusan Lajovic.
“I will remember this experience for the rest of my life as definitely one of the nicest moments in my career. I have been very fortunate and blessed to have an amazing career in the last 15 years, but playing for the team and the country with some of my best friends for a long time, you can’t match that. That’s just too special. I have never experienced an atmosphere like this on a tennis court. You carried us to victory and we owe you a big thanks. We are part of an individual sport where we play by ourselves, but even when we were playing singles it never felt like it was only you out there. You always have a team in your corner giving you strength and focus. This was the highlight of the competition, along with the support of fans and the flags”, said Djokovic.
