ITF

I T F W O R L D C H A M P I O N S 06 ITFWorld // WINTER 2018 Cream crop Resurgent Novak Djokovic is ITF Men's World Champion for the sixth time following a year which saw the Serbian complete a remarkable return to top form and capture two more Grand Slam titles to add to his extensive haul. The 31-year-old now has one more ITF World Champion award in his trophy collection than fellow serial-title winner Roger Federer, while he is level with American Pete Sampras. "I am very honoured to be named ITF World Champion for the sixth time," said Djokovic, who received the accolade five years in succession from 2011. "I am particularly proud of this achievement after all that I've been through physically, but part of me always believed I could make it back to the top. It is very satisfying to join Pete Sampras by winning my sixth award." Djokovic's triumphs at Wimbledon and Flushing Meadows in 2018 were the 13th and 14th Grand Slam wins of his career, while he has now completed the Wimbledon-US Open double on three occasions. Only Federer with 20 titles and Rafael Nadal who has 17 boast more Grand Slam men's singles crowns than Djokovic, and on current form it is not unreasonable to expect further inroads into those tallies. The revitalisation of Djokovic, Nadal and Federer in recent seasons means the gauntlet to the younger generation has been thrown down, especially when considering the last nine Grand Slam men's singles titles have been won by players aged 30 or over. By Djokovic's own admission, finishing as the year-end No. 1 was improbable, fanciful even, when he underwent surgery on his chronically painful right elbow following the Australian Open, which in itself was his first tournament for six months. Six-time champion Djokovic bowed out in Melbourne in the fourth round after enduring a torrid and injury- plagued three-set defeat to then-21-year-old Chung Hyeon of South Korea. Reuniting with long-term coach Marian Vajda at the Monte Carlo Masters in April, he entered the Rome of the "I am very honoured to be named ITF World Champion for the sixth time" N O V A K D J O K O V I C Many gripping storylines unfolded during a year of tennis which witnessed the return to former glories, career- defining triumphs and a new generation of talent coming to the fore. ITFWorld showcases the very best from a number of crowded fields and presents the 2018 ITF World Champions NOVAK DJOKOVIC

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