"I surprised myself" - Djokovic after win in Rome

Novak Djokovic capped a historic week on Sunday at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia, where he overcame Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-0, 7-6(5) to capture a record-extending 38th ATP Masters 1000 crown.

The Serbian became the fifth man in the Open Era to earn 1,000 match wins when he defeated Casper Ruud in the semi-finals and he backed that up with a hard-fought display against Tsitsipas to win his first title of the season after one hour and 37 minutes.

Speaking after the match, Djokovic said:

“I pleasantly surprised myself I can say. I had a clear game plan and I knew what to expect, so I knew what I had to do, but I did play a perfect first set. After that it was a little tighter. At this level, one or two points can turn a match and he was then back in the game at 4-1 up. The match could easily have gone to a third set but I managed to find the right shots at the right time to come back into the match. The tie-break I was maybe an inch better, but it was a tight, tight tie-break for both of us."

Djokovic was appearing in his fourth straight final at the clay-court event and has now lifted the trophy in the Italian capital six times, with his first triumph coming in 2008:

“Two days ago I played great. I have been building my form for the past couple of weeks and I knew that my best shape on clay usually comes around Rome time, so it could not be better going into Roland Garros with a title.”