Djokovic defends ATP Dubai title

DUBAI -Tennis lovers could not have asked for a better final. Two supremely talented players produced a match to remember in Dubai.

By Ritu Raj Borkakoti

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Published: Sun 28 Feb 2010, 10:11 PM

Last updated: Mon 6 Apr 2015, 8:56 AM

In the end, it was the world number two Novak Djokovic of Serbia who delighted his fans with a 7-5 5-7 6-3 victory over Russia’s Mikhail Youzhny in the final of the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships.

Djokovic became only the second player after world number one Roger Federer to defend the Dubai title.

It was also the first time that Djokovic managed to defend a title in his career.

It was the longest final match because bad weather and unplayable conditions on Saturday evening forced the organizers to resume the match on Sunday afternoon.

Djokovic was leading 7-5 2-0 on Saturday when rain halted play for the second time on Saturday evening.

When the battle resumed on Sunday afternoon, Youzhny fought back from a hopeless situation and gave the defending champion a run for his money.

In the semifinals, Djokovic beat Marcos Baghdatis of Cyprus while Youzhny defeated Jurgen Melzer of Austria.

The winner took home a prize-money of $383,000 while the runner-up received $180,000.

The women’s event was won by Venus Williams.

This was not the first time rain played a part in this championship. The 1993 singles final of the tournament was also delayed by a day because of rain. In 2007, the WTA tournament was also interrupted by rain. Former world number one Martina Hingis had to play a match after midnight due to bad weather.


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