Novak Djokovic will play in the Paris Masters final once more after besting Andrey Rublev in a close three-set match.
Both of these players had extremely tough matches in the previous round. Rublev had to play a late match that finished after midnight, leaving him with very little time to recover for this one properly.
He complained about it during the post-match interview, calling the schedule great, ironically. Djokovic had to overcome a very physical battle with Holger Rune, which went to three sets.
Despite that, the Serbian had a few more hours to prepare for this match, which ultimately certainly benefitted him as he's not the youngest.
The match itself started well for him as he broke Rublev early but then failed to hang onto the lead. Breaking back so soon was crucial for Rublev, as he started to play much better as the set progressed.
He ultimately fought his way to a break point and converted it after a very poor choice by Djokovic. The second set was one where both players played extremely well and had chances but ultimately couldn't break through.
It ended up in a tiebreak where Djokovic shined brightly, winning it. It was an almost perfect set from Rublev, but he faltered in the biggest moment. The final one was a typical indoor one.
Both players were amazing, though Djokovic was slowly starting to establish control. While Rublev was basically perfect in the first two sets, he started to show some minor cracks in the third one.
He had to save break points after all, which didn't happen in the second set. The crucial moment came at 6-5 for Djokovic in the third when he played some really solid points to find his first match points.
He would use the first one to finish the marathon match, with the final score being 5-7 7-6(3) 7-5. Djokovic navigated a 16 ace 52 winner performance from Rublev.
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