But Ruud, a semi-finalist last year, stamped his authority in the tiebreak and did not face a single break point in the match as he beat the Canadian for the second time this year.
-French flair topped American firepower as Gael Monfils turned back the clock to dump fourth seed Taylor Fritz out of the Australian Open on Saturday and celebrate his place in the last 16 with a dance on court.
Davis Cup heavyweights Australia and the United States eased through the first qualifying round on Saturday but Britain were knocked out as Japan hit back from 2-1 down to win 3-2, while Denmark staged a dramatic comeback to overcome Serbia.
Casper Ruud has become the first Norwegian to book a place in the season-ending ATP Finals, leaving one spot to be filled at the tournament in Turin, Italy later this month.
Novak Djokovic's bid for a 100th ATP Tour title gained momentum on Thursday
Sasikumar Mukund will aim for a winning return to the Davis Cup fold as India faces Togo in the World Group I Play-off.
Sumit Nagal attains career-high ATP ranking of 68
Russian Andrey Rublev has become the fifth singles player to qualify for the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin next month, the men's tour said.
Sinner gives the impression of a player with all the answers against whoever he comes up against, but the off-court questions he is likely to face about the doping case that surfaced in August might be harder to shrug off.
Daniil Medvedev destroyed his racket and a net camera in a mid-match meltdown as he survived a huge scare against Thai wildcard Kasidit Samrej.
Novak Djokovic has pulled out of the Serbia team for the ATP Cup in Sydney, event organisers said on Wednesday, raising further doubts over whether the world number one will defend his Australian Open title next month.
The Swiss star underwent arthroscopic right knee surgeries in February 2020 and May 2020. Federer has played five tournaments since having those surgeries, all of which came this season.
Retired tennis great Andy Murray has agreed to join Novak Djokovic's team and will coach him at the Australian Open next year, the Serbian 24-times Grand Slam champion said on Saturday.
The Indian jumped six places following his runner-up finish at the Perugia ATP Challenger tournament on Sunday.
Jannik Sinner retained his Australian Open title with an emphatic 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 win over Alexander Zverev on Sunday
Sinner remains the man to beat at Melbourne Park even as doping officials seek a two-year ban for the world number one for failing two drugs tests last March.
Tommy Paul led a parade of seeded players into the quarterfinals on Wednesday at the Adelaide International in Australia.
Former Indian tennis captain Anand Amritraj has criticized top players Sumit Nagal and Yuki Bhambri for not playing in the Davis Cup, stating that money should not be a factor when representing the country.
The Croatian helped Djokovic claim nine of his 24 Grand Slam titles before leaving his team in March and on Friday was hired to coach world number five Rybakina for the 2025 season.
Sasikumar Mukund, who was banned by AITA on disciplinary grounds, is back as India's best-ranked player for the World Group I Play-off tie against Togo, starting on Saturday.
Defending champion Jannik Sinner dismissed eighth seed Alex de Minaur 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 to reach the Australian Open semi-finals and extend the country's decades-long wait for another homegrown singles winner at the Grand Slam on Wednesday.
India's singles challenge has already ended with both Sumit Nagal and Ramkumar Ramanathan making first round exits.
The All India Tennis Association (AITA) selection panel picked a five-member squad in which Mukund will be the highest-ranked singles player at number 368.
Djokovic saved three breakpoints in stifling conditions to go 5-4 up but lost the opening set in a tough tiebreak as Opelka cranked up his serve
The events will be on single-year licence as the ATP offers professionals the opportunity to earn money and ranking points in the wake of the coronavirus shutdown.
Russian Daniil Medvedev's 2022 season opened with a stunning defeat at the hands of Frenchman Ugo Humbert after a three-hour dogfight in a steamy Ken Rosewall Arena at the ATP Cup on Sunday.
Australia now have the opportunity to avenge last year's final defeat by Italy after world number one Jannik Sinner inspired the holders to a 2-1 victory over Argentina.
While Daniil Medvedev remained the world number one, 2022 Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic dropped to seventh position after the grass-court Grand Slam tournament was stripped of ranking points for banning Russian and Belarusian players.
'It's one of the most epic matches I have played on this court, on any court really.'
Novak Djokovic beat Norway's Casper Ruud 7-5, 6-3 to collect a record-equalling sixth ATP Finals title on Sunday, earning the biggest paycheck ever in tennis - $4,740,300 - for completing the season-ending tournament unbeaten.
The Serbian Wimbledon champion extended his win streak to nine, wrapping up the final in 75 minutes without facing a break point and booked his place at next month's ATP Finals.
Eqbal and Faisal's recent success saw him conquer Fardeen Mohammed and Abhinansu Borthakur 6-0, 6-2 in the men's doubles final to win the title.
The unanswerable question, of course, is whether Djokovic is the GOAT. That's a complex issue over which fans will forever bicker, observes Kanika Datta.
Former world number one Novak Djokovic, the last surviving member of tennis' "Big Four", said he does not plan on stopping any time soon but admitted that the retirement of rivals Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Rafa Nadal has been overwhelming.
Here is a quick glance of all the highs and lows from Nadal's stupendous career:
The last time the Swiss maestro was this far down in the ATP rankings was all the way back on January 2001, when Federer was just 19 years old. Notably, he was yet to win his first tour title.
The sight of immaculately-dressed line judges standing or crouching at the side and back of the grass courts has been a feature at the Grand Slam for 147 years.
Frances Tiafoe sees huge strides for American men after another deep US Open run. The ebullient fan favourite was already looking to the future.
Defending champions Italy moved into the Davis Cup final after a 2-0 win over Australia on Saturday as Jannik Sinner defeated Alex de Minaur in straight sets to follow up Matteo Berrettini's victory over Thanasi Kokkinakis.
Carlos Alcaraz beat Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final to win his fourth Grand Slam title.
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