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Djokovic's Win Puts Him Close To No. 2

SUNDAY, NOV. 16 – In a command performance, Novak Djokovic throttled Nikolay Davydenko for the ATP Masters Cup Shanghai trophy and within a hair's breath of the No. 2 ranking.

Djokovic finishes with 1,059 points in the ATP 2008 Race to 1,061 for Roger Federer. Rafael Nadal had a large lead and finished with 1,335.

"I would put it in the same league as a Grand Slam because the best eight players in the world are participating here. I feel very happy. End up the season the way I started it, with a win in a big event. So it's a great boost up for upcoming season," Djokovic said.

“It was special because I've played in the second part of the season in a couple of finals, and I didn't manage to win the title for a long time, since Rome. That's probably the reason why I couldn't close it out at 5-4. I was a bit nervous. It's not easy, you know. There is a lot of pressure involved. I'm happy that I managed to hold my nerves in the end."" Djokovic said.

While the Serb stormed through the first set, Davydenko didn't get going until late in the second sed. The Russian saved two match points on his serve and then broke for the first time as Djokovic served for the match. Djokovic returned the favor and broke back for 6-5 and then put the match away with a flawless final game.

"When you feel 100 percent like you're going to lose, it's very difficult to be positive," Davydenko said. "Normally I play very fast and with good control, and today I didn't."

In the doubles final Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic defeated Bob and Mike Bryan 7-6(3), 6-2 to hoist them to the top of the rankings. The dramatic match decided which team would finish No. 1 for 2008. MORE

Davy Sails Over Federer-beater Murray; Djokovic Stretched To Reach Finals

SATURDAY, Nov. 15 – Did Andy Murray let his pride color his strategy?

A notably tired Murray lost in the semis to Nikolay Davydenko 7-5, 6-2 of the Tennis Masters Cup Shanghai. The day before he played the match of the week, edging Roger Federer in Friday's final round-robin match.

The Federer match was a contest that the Scot did not need to win to advance to the semifinal, as he had earned his spot with his first two wins.

But the sting of his blowout loss to the Swiss in the US Open final must have weighed on his mind as he battled for three hours to toss Federer out of Shanghai. Defending champ Federer ended the tournament 1-2.

Davydenko said, "I was lucky Murray beat Federer yesterday. But I played very well today and won. He wanted to show he was the best player by beating Federer so maybe he was really tired."

No. 3 Novak Djokovic advanced to the final with a long, three-set win over Gilles Simon. 4-6, 6-3, 7-5.

Simon, who will end the year as No. 7, was the surprise of the tournament with a victory over Federer. In the semi the Frenchman admitted he made too many unforced errors.

But he took a positive look at his fairy-tale run. "I defeated the number two, I played three sets in three hours against the number three so that'll give me confidence for next year," Simon said.

Djokovic has some key momentum coming into the match, having defeated Davydenko 7-6, 0-6, 7-5 in the round robin. MORE

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