Novak Djokovic has qualified for the semi-finals at the Nitto ATP Finals after a dominant 6-4 6-1 win over Andrey Rublev.
The Serb eased past Rublev to go 2-0 in the Red Group qualify for the last four in Turin.
Meanwhile Rublev offered no resistance as he now goes 1-1 and will face Stefanos Tsitsipas on Friday.
Djokovic will top the group should Tsitsipas be victorious over Daniil Medvedev later tonight.
It was a quick start to the match from both players as Djokovic continued where he left off against Stefanos Tsitsipas, serving effortlessly.
While Rublev also powered to service holds as he carried the momentum from his tight win over Daniil Medvedev into this match.
Djokovic’s deep shot-making and clinical returning was causing Rublev problems but only in moments as the Serb was unable to break down the sixth seed consistently.
As for Rublev he was putting in a solid display as he didn’t overcommit on his aggressive shots and continued to find the angles to power past the Serb’s defence.
However after being unable to make an impression on return, Rublev was made to play for his reactive tactics towards the end of the opening set.
In the ninth game, Djokovic increased the pressure and intensity forcing Rublev to be more aggressive from the baseline and therefore less effective as a result.
The big moments saw Djokovic rise to the occasion and the 21-time Grand Slam champion pounced when the opportunity came as a return winner sealed the crucial break and the set in 36 minutes.
Rublev’s emotion got the better of him as slamming his racket did him no favours when attempting to figure out how to consistently power past Djokovic’s accuracy.
This continued into the second set as Djokovic continued his clinical display by picking apart Rublev’s game piece by piece.
Rublev’s frustration only continued to boil as he was broken in a long second game as Djokovic would take a 3-0 lead.
It was a pretty toothless display from Rublev who had nothing in order to disrupt the rhythm of the former world number one.
As Rublev continued to look helpless, Djokovic obliged in putting the Russian out of his misery as he dominated from the baseline and produced a returning masterclass to break for a 5-1 lead.
A forehand winner sealed a dominant 69 minute display as the Serb has secured his place into the semi-finals, where he is likely to face Taylor Fritz or Felix Auger-Aliassime.
On the other hand Rublev will need to refocus for his match against Stefanos Tsitsipas on Friday.
