Djokovic, Tsonga in final
Written by changthai11 on Monday, September 29th, 2008
Djokovic, Tsonga in final
Duo to face off in a repeat of their Australian Open showdown
TOR CHITTINAND
Novak Djokovic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will face off for the Thailand Open title today in a rematch of their Australian Open final.
Top seed Djokovic of Serbia booked his place in the final of the US$576,000 ATP event with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic yesterday.
In the other semi-final, second-seeded Frenchman Tsonga thrashed his compatriot and friend Gael Monfils 6-0, 6-3 in just 52 minutes at Impact Arena, Muang Thong Thani.
World number three Djokovic struggled through a 53-minute first set against third seed Berdych.
Djokovic had fortune on his side when he clinched the first set with a powerful backhand that crashed off the top of the net and landed way out of the Czech’s reach.
Playing in the Thailand Open semi-finals for a second successive year, Berdych fought hard and was unlucky to lose the second set by such a large margin, but the Serb served well and seized on the Czech’s errors.
“I felt as if I woke up from a dream in the second set,” Djokovic said. “I felt sleepy in the first set. I also felt sleepy the previous day. But in the second set I broke him twice. He had bad service games and I took the opportunities.”
Australian Open champion Djokovic expected a tough final against world number 20 Tsonga who returned from a three-month knee-injury lay-off in August.
“It is great to meet Jo again after the Australian Open final. It will be an interesting match,” the Serb said. “We are both aggressive players. He wants revenge. There is no doubt about that. I will do my best to stop him.”
World number 30 Monfils did not stand a chance as Tsonga unleashed a stream of stinging topspin-loaded returns which kept his compatriot on the back foot throughout the one-sided match.
Playing only his second event since undergoing knee surgery in May, Tsonga was surprised by his form. “I played unbelievable tennis,” he said. “I didn’t expect this. I didn’t move so well but I hit the ball really hard.”The crowd let out a huge roar when Monfils won his first game in the second set, but the in-form Tsonga was giving little away, serving and volleying and blasting the ball low into the corners of the court.
Djokovic signs autographs for enthusiastic Thai fans.
Asked about the clash with Djokovic, Tsonga said: “It will be a different match and different conditions, but it will be my chance to take my revenge.”
