November 18th, 2008 
admin Third-ranked Serbia’s Novak Djokovic who won his first Masters Cup title with 6-1, 7-5 on Sunday over Nikolay Davydenko in the season-ending tournament at Shanghai, China. It was Djokovic’s first tournament victory since he won the Rome Masters in May, and it left him only 10 points behind No. 2 Roger Federer in the rankings. After Davydenko netted a service return on match point, Djokovic repeatedly pumped both fists and threw two rackets, his wristbands and shirt into the crowd.
“I would put it in the same league as a Grand Slam because the best eight players in the world are participating here. It’s a huge achievement for me,” Djokovic said. 
Serbia’s Novak Djokovic set his sights on becoming world number one after moving just 10 points behind second-placed Roger Federer in the rankings with his Masters Cup win. The Serb, on the brink of breaking Federer and Rafael Nadal‘s three-and-a-half year stranglehold on the top two spots, said being crowned the best men‘s player was a realistic goal next season.
“Certainly I believe that I have the quality to reach the top spot in the upcoming year or next couple of years, 10 years. That’s my lifetime goal that I‘ve been always trying to achieve. But I learned a lesson. If I pay too much attention on rankings, it doesn’t go the right way. So I just want to improve my game. I know there is still room for improvement, and I just want to get my game in the highest possible level and results will show up.” he said.
The Australian Open champion showed masterful tennis in a straightforward 6-1, 7-5 win over Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko at Qi Zhong Stadium to lift his second major title this year. Djokovic had played well only in patches at the year-end event, being held in Shanghai for the last time, but he finally revealed his true quality in a one-sided final. The 21-year-old has occupied the third ranking since August 2007 as Federer and Nadal dominated, but he said several new faces would now also challenge for the top spots.
Britain’s Andy Murray reinforced his credentials with his third victory over Federer this year, while Gilles Simon, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Juan Martin del Potro also made their debuts here.
“This year has been quite interesting in the sense that there have been more players being candidates to win the major titles, and more players winning the major titles. I think it’s good for the sport to see some new faces playing the final stages of the major events.” Djokovic said.
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