Novak Djokovic Beats Rafael Nadal in China Open Final
The inspired Serb secured one break in each set on the way to victory to win 6-3 6-4 against his Spanish opponent, who will move to the top of the men’s rankings on Monday after reaching the final for the first time since July 2011.
The Spaniard who has won 65 of his 69 matches this year and the French Open and US Open in 2013,failed to engineer a break point as his run of 21 matches unbeaten came to an end in Beijing.
Djokovic has now won the China Open for a fourth time. He started strongly to set the tone for the match by breaking Nadal’s first service game to race into a 3-0 lead.
The break proved crucial as the Serb produced some impressive tennis, with the timing and depth of his strokes not allowing Nadal the chance to get his game going.
Djokovic dragged Nadal out wide with his serve and struck a powerful forehand into open space to wrap up the opening set after 35 minutes.
The start of the second set saw Djokovic immediately break the Spaniard again and he continued to hold the initiative in commanding style.
He took the following game to love and, as Nadal struggled to put pressure on his serve, went on to secure an emphatic win.
