Djokovic receives the number one trophy that puts him at the height of Pete Sampras

Applauded by the small group of circumstantial spectators (players, coaches, physios, members of the organization …) who may be inside the O2 Arena in London during the Finals, Novak Djokovic lifted the trophy presented to him by ATP president Andrea Gaudenzi, crediting him for the sixth time in his career as number one at the end of the year. He already achieved it in 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2018 and a video projected on the scoreboard of the British pavilion recalled those achievements shortly before the brief ceremony to recognize the Serbian, who It equals the record of Pete Sampras, his adolescent idol, and breaks the tie at five he held with Nadal, Federer and Connors.

“I am very proud and overwhelmed by joy and happy emotions. It is a team effort, without them, their support, their trust and love, and that of my family could not have done it. I try not to take this for granted, because even though I am an individual athlete, at the end of the day there are a lot of people behind the court who do their best to make me able to be who I am. So thank you all “, started ehe Balkan, who did not forget the difficult situation in tennis and in all areas. “I have mixed feelings, because this season has been very unusual and different, with six months without tournaments. And at the same time, the whole world has been through hard times. I am happy but at the same time sad for what is happening, “he said.

Djokovic, who will face Diego Schwartzman this Monday (15:00, #Vamos) in the Tokyo 1970 Group, also haunts the record of weeks at the top of the ranking, held by Federer with 310. Nole accumulates 295 and in March he will surpass the Swiss at the top of the historical table. In London he can win a maximum of 1,300 if he ends up undefeated champion, because he defends the 200 achieved last year when he failed to reach the crosses. He arrives at the Masters tournament with a 39-3 record and four titles: Australia, Dubai, Cincinnati and Rome.