Djokovic to face Nadal in final

Originally published on: 10/11/13 00:00

The defending champion eased to a 6-3 6-3 win at London’s O2 to extend his winning streak to 21 matches after Nadal defeated six-time champion Roger Federer earlier on Sunday.

It will be the sixth meeting between Nadal and Djokovic this season. Nadal has the edge with three wins out of five, but Djokovic won their most recent contest in the China Open final last month in Beijing.

Both players are unbeaten in London after finishing top of their respective groups with three wins from the round-robin matches.

"It's going to be a great final," Djokovic said. "I hope all the crowd will enjoy it because we definitely do on the court. It's always a thrilling competition between me and Rafa. Let's say we know each other quite well. There'll be no secret between us on the court."

Wawrinka, who took Djokovic to five sets at both the Australian Open and US Open this year, started confidently and grabbed an early break to lead 2-1 after a series of scintillating groundstrokes. However, having taken the lead, his error count began to creep up, and Djokovic levelled immediately before breaking for a 5-3 lead to secure the opening set.

The 26-year-old Serb carried his momentum into the second set, breaking his opponent in the first game, and Wawrinka was always on the back foot as he struggled to find an opening on Djokovic's serve.

Djokovic, who hit just 14 unforced errors to his opponent’s 34, won 92% of points on his first serve in the second set as he refused to allow Wawrinka back into the match, claiming a second break to secure victory.

"I think I don't had enough energy today. Against him, that makes a big difference," Wawrinka admitted. "I'm disappointed with myself because I had the feeling that I could have done something better, but I really think that today I was not fresh enough to do something."

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