Novak Celebrates Birth of Son by Winning Paris - Mondays with Bob Greene

Mondays with Bob Greene

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Novak Djokovic beat Milos Raonic 6-2 6-3 to win the BNP Paribas Paris Masters in Paris, France

Andrea Petkovic beat Flavia Pennetta 1-6 6-4 6-3 to win the Garanti Koza WTA Tournament of Champions in Sofia, Bulgaria

SAYING

“This week has been incredible and my first tournament since becoming a father 10 days ago, so I dedicate this victory to my wife and son.” – Novak Djokovic, after winning the Paris Masters.

“It’s been an incredible week for me.” – Milos Raonic, after reaching the Paris Masters final, only to lose to Novak Djokovic.

“I think you need to be a little crazy, but in a good way.” – Caroline Wozniacki, after running the New York City Marathon.

“It’s going to be a lot of tension and I might get nervous first match, but I will try to enjoy the moment.” – Kei Nishikori, on qualifying for the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals.

“Monica Seles. I played her in Indian Wells in 2002 and she beat me 6-0 6-2. I was only 14 at the time, but I learned a lot from that match. It really showed me how big the difference is between playing as a junior and a pro. She had such a positive attitude about her. She was really inspiring.” – Maria Sharapova, in a Sport Magazine interview when asked who is the most talented player she has faced.

SON SPURS NOVAK

With one victory Novak Djokovic reached a lot of milestones. His 6-2 6-3 win over Milos Raonic gave the world’s number one player his second straight Paris Masters victory. It also was his 600^th ATP career match win. And it was his first tournament title since his wife Jelena gave birth to their son Stefan. “I dedicate this victory to my wife and son,” Djokovic said. The victory also extended his indoor winning streak to 27 match – his last defeat coming in Paris two years ago. And the 27-year-old Serb also increased his lead over Roger Federer in the race for the year-ending number one spot. “It’s not easy against a player with such a big serve but I played an exceptional match and I’m very happy to win this trophy,” Djokovic said. “Like I said, it’s my first tournament since becoming a dad and it’s been a great pleasure to play here.” Djokovic won the opening three games of the match and never appeared to be in trouble after that. He also took a 3-0 lead in the second set. Djokovic is now fifth on the all-time list of active players with match wins. Federer leads with 991, Rafael Nadal has 706, Lleyton Hewitt has 611 and David Ferrer 602.

Even in defeat, Raonic was pleased with his week, having knocked off Roger Federer in the quarterfinals. “It’s been an incredible week for me,” the Canadian said. “Congratulations to Novak for his win and also the new addition to his family. … He didn’t really give me too many looks. Even on the break chances I had, he played them well and he just made life difficult for me today.”

STARRING IN SOFIA

Although Andrea Petkovic won the season-ending Tournament of Champions, her season is far from over. She is on Germany’s team that will take on the Czech Republic in the Fed Cup final this week. In Sofia, Bulgaria, Petkovic lost her serve three times in the opening set before rallying to defeat Italy’s Flavia Pennetta and win her third WTA title of the year. “I am very happy to win the title at the end of this long season,” Petkovic said. “I dedicate my victory to my dad (and coach Zoran Petkovic).” The 27-year-old is the fifth player to win three or more tournaments in 2014 after Serena Williams (7), Maria Sharapova (4), Ana Ivanovic (4) and Petra Kvitova (3). Petkovic broke Pennetta in the opening game of the second set, then held on to level the match. After splitting the first six games in the deciding set, Petkovic won the final three for the victory. “I’m happy I met Flavia in the final because we’ve both been coming back from injury this year,” Petkovic said. “I was so happy when she won Indian Wells because I know what she went through, and so it’s even nicer to play her for this title today. I hope next season is even better for her.”

SIX 1000 CROWNS

The Bryan twins keep on rewriting the record books. Brothers Bob and Mike became the first players in singles or doubles to win six ATP World Tour Masters 1000 titles in the same season when they captured the BNP Paribas Masters final in Paris by defeating Marcin Matkowski and Jurgen Melzer in a match tiebreak. The Americans also won ATP World Tour Masters 1000s in Indian Wells, Miami, Monte-Carlo, Cincinnati and Shanghai. They also captured the doubles at the US Open, in Delray Beach, Florida, USA, and Houston, Texas, USA. It was their 32^nd ATP World Tour Masters 1000 crown in their 50^th final and their 102^nd tour-level title. “We’re very happy to win Paris again, especially since we had to beat four quality teams along the way,” Mike Bryan said. “We hope to keep our level high going into the last tournament of the season.” The 36-year-old twins have clinched the year-end number one spot in the doubles rankings and have qualified for the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals next week.

SERVING BIG

Until the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris, big-serving Milos Raonic had only won one set against Roger Federer. He changed that in a hurry in Paris. Raonic beat Federer 7-6 (4) 7-5 in a quarterfinal matchup and eventually reached the title match, where he lost to Novak Djokovic. The victory for the Canadian was his first over Federer in seven meetings and also snapped the Swiss maestro’s 14-match winning streak. There was only one service break in the match, that coming at 5-5 in the second set. Raonic finished with 21 aces. “I played well throughout the match and served really well, so it’s a great victory,” the Canadian said. “Considering all the circumstances around it, I think this was the biggest win for me.”

SEASON-ENDER

Top-ranked Novak Djokovic and second-ranked Roger Federer will continue their battle for the year-end number one ranking when they battle in the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London. But by winning in Paris, Djokovic almost has wrapped up that battle. “I see it better now than one week ago, that’s for sure,” Djokovic said. “It helps that I won the title in Bercy, that I’m playing well, and that I’m feeling good about myself on the court playing indoors.” Federer agrees. “Whether I am number one at the end of this year or one or two weeks later next year, it doesn’t really matter,” the Swiss maestro said. “Novak seems to be fit, anyway.” Djokovic extended his points advantage over Federer to 1,310 points with 1,500 available to a player who makes an unbeaten run to the World Tour Finals title. Federer also can pick up points when he plays the Davis Cup final for Switzerland against France beginning November 21.

Other qualifiers for the London tournament are Australian Open winner Stan Wawrinka of Switzerland, Great Britain’s Andy Murray, Japan’s Kei Nishikori, Thomas Berdych of the Czech Republic, US Open champion Marin Cilic of Croatia, and Canada’s Milos Raonic. Nishikori said he’s “excited but nervous” about becoming the first Asian-born player to qualify for the season-ending finale. “It’s going to be a lot of tension and I might get nervous first match, but I will try to enjoy the moment,” said Nishikori, who reached the US Open final in September where he lost to Cilic. “I have been playing really well this year, so I think I have a chance to do well.”

Spain’s Rafael Nadal also qualified for the ATP World Tour Finals, but withdrew to undergo appendix surgery.

STEPPIN’ OUT

A camera crew’s presence helped Caroline Wozniacki finish the New York City Marathon in an impressive time of 3:26:33 and raise more than USD $81,000 for Team For Kids. “I’ve never tried anything this hard,” Wozniacki said after running the 26.2-mile distance for the first time. “This was the toughest physical test I’ve ever (had). It’s so hard. You have to keep going, keep going. Once I got onto First Avenue, I had a camera crew following me the whole day, so I couldn’t walk. I had to keep running.” Ranked eighth in the world on the WTA tour, Wozniacki had never run more than 13 miles during her training due to her exhaustive tennis schedule. After the marathon, the Dane said 13 miles had felt “really easy,” but admitted she hit the proverbial wall around mile 20 before pushing through it to the finish line in Central Park. There, she was greeted by her close friend and rival tennis player Serena Williams. “I didn’t feel nerves at all last night, and I didn’t feel them at all when I woke up this morning,” Wozniacki said. “The only time I felt them was when we were going onto the bridge to start. I was like, ‘Oh, my God, what did I get myself into? Ready or not, there’s no way back. As long as I finished and didn’t get injured, that’s an achievement in itself.” Her time qualified her for the Boston Marathon, although she has said she did not plan on running another marathon. Another women’s tennis player – Japan’s Kimiko Date-Krumm – ran the 2004 London marathon in 3:27:47, but that was when she was in the midst of a 12-year retirement from tennis.

SET FOR PRAGUE

Angelique Kerber and Andrea Petkovic will lead Germany into the Fed Cup final November 8-9 in Prague, Czech Republic. The Czech squad will be spearheaded by Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova. Kerber is ranked 10^th in the world and Petkovic 14^th. Also named to the German team are Sabine Lisicki and Julia Goerges. Playing their third Fed Cup final in four years, the Czechs will team the fourth-ranked Kvitova with Lucie Safarova, Karolina Pliskova and Lucie Hradecka. The 22-year-old Pliskova has rocketed up the rankings this year and is at a career-high 24^th in the world after winning her second and third career titles in the last two months. The Czechs have won the international team tittle seven times, and have beaten Germany six times in their seven encounters. Germany is seeking to capture its third Fed Cup crown and first since 1992.

SCENE IS LONDON

Brothers Bob and Mike Bryan will be the top seeds in the 2014 Barclays ATP World Tour Finals doubles competition November 9-16. The Bryans have already clinched the year-end number one Emirates ATP Doubles Team Ranking for a record 10^th time and will be out to capture their fourth season finale title. Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic won the season-ending crown twice, in 2008 and 2010, while Julien Benneteau and Edouard Roger-Vasselin reigned supreme at the French Open this year. Australian Open champions Lukasz Kubot and Robert Lindstedt are in the hunt, as are the teams of Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau, Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez, Alexander Peya and Bruno Soares, and Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo.

SPARKLING TEEN

Xu Shi Lin has made Chinese tennis history by getting to the top of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) world junior tennis rankings for girls’ aged 18 and under. She is the first Chinese player ever to be ranked number one in the world in the juniors. The 16-year-old moved to the top of the heap by winning the singles and doubles titles at the Osaka Mayor’s Cup in Japan. Like Hall of Famer Monica Seles, Xu hits with two hands from both sides. She dropped only one set in winning six matches to win the titles. “I am very proud to become the first Chinese player to earn the number one world junior ranking,” said Xu, who has been Asia’s top-ranked junior for the past two years. “The 2014 season is not over yet, so I need to stay focused and continue to play like I did in Japan.” Xu will be defending her Asian titles in singles and doubles in Korea during next week, and then finish the season during the first two weeks of December playing two world-class events in Florida, USA: the Eddie Herr and Orange Bowl tournaments.

SLAMS RACQUET, DISQUALIFIED

Darian King of Barbados let his anger get the best of him. It also got him disqualified from a challenger tournament in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA. In his first-round match against Edward Corrie of Great Britain, King became very upset and slammed his racquet into the wall behind him. Unfortunately, a lineswoman was standing close to the wall, and while the racquet didn’t hit her, she collapsed to the ground and had to be attended to. King had lost the first set 6-4 and the second set was knotted at 6 and going into a tiebreak when he angrily threw his racquet into the wall.

SHARED PERFORMANCES

Paris: Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan beat Marcin Matkowski and Jurgen Melzer 7-6 (5) 5-7 10-6 (match tiebreak)

SURFING

Bratislava: www.stz.sk/

Fed Cup: www.fedcup.com

London: www.barclaysatpworldtourfinals.com/en/

Dubai: www.dubaitennis.com

Toyota: www.dunlop-tennis.jp

Davis Cup: www.daviscup.com

TOURNAMENTS THIS WEEK

(All money in USD)

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