Novak Djokovic was recognized this Monday afternoon, in front of a packed Pala Alpitour, as No. 1 at the end of the year sponsored by Pepperstone. The president of the ATP, Andrea Gaudenzi, was in charge of presenting the trophy to the Serbian for this great achievement.
“Obviously it is the crown of the season, finishing the year as No. 1 in the world,” said Djokovic, who holds the record with eight years finishing at the top. “I think it is the dream of any tennis player. It is one of the most difficult things in our sport. Obviously, winning a Grand Slam and being No. 1 in the world are the pinnacle of this sport.”
“It has been a long year for all the players and being able to be here is a blessing and I want to thank my team, who is here, my coaches, everyone, physiotherapist, physical trainer, Goran, Claudio, Marko, Miljan, Mark, Charlie, Carlos, everyone who has walked this path with me. It’s a team effort, even if I’m alone on the court. But I couldn’t celebrate it without them. “It is a tremendous success and I am very proud of it.”
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Djokovic Extends Record for Most Year-End No. 1s
Djokovic certified his record at the end of the day this Sunday, when he defeated Holger Rune in his first Green Group match at the Nitto ATP Finals. In this way, he extended his record of years finished as No. 1 in the world to eight.
Two years ago, the Serbian also set the record for being the oldest to collect the Pepperstone-sponsored year-end No. 1 trophy (since 1973) at the age of 34. This year, he has broken his own record at 36 years old.
Djokovic will return to the court at the Nitto ATP Finals this Tuesday afternoon against local favorite Jannik Sinner to try to get closer to another record: winning the season-ending tournament seven times.
The post first appeared on www.atptour.com