Dominic Thiem ended Novak Djokovic’s bid for a record-tying sixth ATP Finals title, beating the top-ranked player 7-5, 6-7 (10), 7-6 (5) in the semifinals Saturday by grabbing seven of the last eight points.
Thiem could have closed things more than an hour earlier, but he frittered away four match points in the second-set tiebreaker, including one by double-faulting.
Then the U.S. Open champion trailed 4-0 in the last tiebreaker before turning things around. When it ended with Djokovic sailing a forehand long, Thiem dropped his racket and covered his face with his hands.
”It was, for sure, a mental battle,” Thiem said.
The No. 3-ranked Thiem’s 300th career match win put him in the final of the season-ending tournament for the second straight year; he was runner-up to Stefanos Tsitsipas in 2019.
No. 2 Rafael Nadal was scheduled to face No. 4 Daniil Medvedev in Saturday’s second semifinal. The final is Sunday. None of the last three men in the field has won the tournament, meaning there will be a sixth different champion over the past six years, the longest such stretch since 1974-79.
