Tennis great Novak Djokovic credited his "never-die spirit" for carrying him to the 102nd title of his career as he won the China Open on Tuesday when his opponent Alex de Minaur retired injured from the final.
With the win, the 39-year-old Serbian extended a perfect record to 34 wins in as many matches for his seventh title in Beijing — his first since 2015.
Djokovic said afterwards that in more than two decades as a professional player, "the grit and the dedication and the kind of never-die spirit that really is always with me" had carried him through.
Tennis is "quite a cruel sport" with players competing in knock-out tournaments year-round, Djokovic told reporters, adding that the stakes and pressure of performing in front of fans made the sport "so demanding and so special".
"You can feel so much weight on your shoulders, but it is what I have been destined to do," he said.
In front of a jam-packed stadium, Djokovic won the first set in the tie-break 7-6 (7/3) and was down a game in the second set when the Australian ended the match early.
"I always want to visualise myself with the trophy, particularly here in Beijing," Djokovic said during the trophy ceremony.
"But I was also quite aware that reality is a little bit different these days," he said, adding that it had been a challenging year with "physical and health issues".
"I was just trying to find the good feeling on the court," he said.
The first set was a physical battle that lasted more than one hour, and both men needed medical timeouts before the second.
De Minaur, the world No 9, won the first game of the second set before retiring due to a left adductor strain.
The 27-year-old had walked back onto the court after his medical timeout with a white wrap around his left thigh.
"I don't feel great," De Minaur told the crowd afterwards.
"I want to say sorry to the amazing fans that came to watch ... I didn't want to finish like this."
De Minaur advanced to the final after his opponent Hubert Hurkacz retired injured from their semifinal on Monday, while Djokovic moved through when Daniil Medvedev was disqualified for hitting a fan with a ball.
But Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, put on a valiant show to lift the trophy, ousting top seed Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinal after defeating home hope Bu Yunchaokete in a demanding three-set match.
It means Djokovic will end the season with at least one title for the 21st consecutive year, and as the oldest man to win a singles final after Ken Rosewall in Hong Kong in 1977 at age 43. — AFP
