WorldTennisMagazine.com takes a look back at ATP World Tour Finals from yester-year in this special series – ATP World Tour Final Rewind. Today we look back to matches from November 19, as excerpted from the book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, New Chapter Press, www.TennisHistoryBook.com) by Randy Walker.
2006 – Roger Federer concludes one of the most dominating seasons in tennis history, defeating James Blake 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 in the final of the Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai,China. Federer finishes the year with 12 titles in 16 final-round appearances in 17 total tournaments played, three major championships (Australian Open, Wimbledon and the U.S. Open) and becomes the first player to exceed $7 million in prize money in a season with a $8.34 million during the 2006 campaign. Only two players manage to beat Federer during the year – Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray. Says Blake of the undisputed world No. 1, “Obviously, we’re all chasing Roger. It’s no secret. He’s playing head and shoulders above the rest of us.” Says Federer of his epic year, “To finish it off by winning the Masters Cup, the world championship so to speak, it’s the perfect ending to an incredible season. There’s not much more I could have done.” Federer is one match from winning the Grand Slam – losing in the final of the French Championships to Nadal. He finishes the year with a 92-5 record – winning his last 29 matches.
1995 – Boris Becker defeats Michael Chang 7-6 (3), 6-0, 7-6 (5) in the year-end ATP Tour Finals in Frankfurt, Germany. Says Becker, “This was the best crowd I’ve ever had in Germany.”
2005 – World No. 1 Roger Federer blanks Gaston Gaudio of Argentina 6-0, 6-0 in the semifinals of the year-end Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, China – the first ever white-wash in the 35-year history of the year-end men’s championships.