Djokovic, Ivanovic make Serbia proud with Indian Wells titles
It was Serbia’s night all through as earlier Ana Ivanovic had clinched her first WTA title of the year by hammering Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-4 6-3 in the women’s singles final.
Two months after claiming his first Grand Slam crown at the Australian Open, Djokovic broke world No 98 Fish once in the final set before sealing victory in just over two hours.
“It’s been a dream start to the year,” third-seeded Djokovic, runner-up in the Masters Series event at Indian Wells 12 months ago, told reporters.
“Before I started this year, I said my goals were to be consistent with results, reach the Masters and hopefully win a grand slam. I did that in a very, very small amount of time.
“I also want to congratulate Mardy on a fantastic week. He’s a much better player than that (98th) and deserves to be ranked much higher.”
Fish, ranked a career-high 17th four years ago, capped a remarkable run that featured three victories over top-10 players by stunning Swiss world No 1 Roger Federer in Saturday’s semi-final.
“This has been a tremendous week for me, definitely one I will never forget,” said the American, who won the last of his two ATP titles in Houston in 2006. “Yesterday was one of the best days of my life and this is my favourite tournament.”
Djokovic, 20, made a fast start in the final, winning the first six points of the match and breaking Fish in the second game when the American crowd favourite hit a forehand long.
Although Fish broke back in the fifth, forcing a backhand error by his opponent with a searing forehand service return, he failed to hold serve in the sixth.
A protracted game featuring high-quality rallies ended when Fish pushed a backhand wide and double-faulted to trail 2-4.
Djokovic held for 5-2 and again broke in the eighth when the American double-faulted to take the opening set in 35 minutes.
The second set went with serve until breaks were exchanged in the sixth and seventh games, the Serb throwing his racket in frustration after double-faulting for his lead to be pegged back to 4-3.
Fish, beginning to replicate the form he produced the previous day to stun Federer, piled on the pressure in the 11th before breaking when Djokovic netted a backhand.
That put the American 6-5 up and he served out for the set, levelling the match when the Serb blasted a backhand drive into the net.
Djokovic fought back from 0-40 down on his own serve with three aces in the first game of the third to hold and broke Fish in the second with a backhand winner down the line.
The rest of the set went with serve until the Serb fired his 10th ace for his first match point before sealing victory at the second attempt when Fish struck a backhand long.
The 20-year-old Ivanovic, the top seed from Belgrade, broke Kuznetsova, the second seed, three times in the second set to wrap up victory in one hour 21 minutes.After dominating a first set of quality shot-making with sparkling forehands, Ivanovic held the edge in an error-prone second before sealing the title by hitting a service return winner.
It was the sixth WTA success of Ivanovic’s career and Kuznetsova’s third loss in a final this season.
“It’s a great victory for me,” a beaming Ivanovic told reporters, having squealed in delight after securing the first Masters Series title of the year and beating the Russian for a fifth time in six meetings.
“When I managed to break her at four-all in the first set, it gave me confidence and I went strong from that point on.
“I was most happy about my aggressiveness today,” added the Serb, who hit 30 winners to Kuznetsova’s 14.
“I was staying low and taking my opportunities, knowing that when she would hit the short ball I would try to attack and take away time from her.
“I’m really enjoying my time and I’m playing some good tennis. The hard work is paying off so I’m just happy to see that.
Kuznetsova, the 2004 US Open champion, conceded she had been totally outplayed in losing her eighth WTA final in her last nine.
“It’s always painful to lose, but I prefer to get to the final losing than to lose in second round,” the Russian said.
On a sun-drenched afternoon in the California desert, the opening set went with serve until the ninth game when a crunching forehand by Ivanovic forced an error off Kuznetsova’s backhand for the Serb to lead 30-40.
Ivanovic, Australian Open runner-up in January, coolly clinched the break point with a whipping top-spin forehand winner to edge ahead 5-4.
The elegant Serb then served out to take the opening set in 40 minutes, clinching the final point when the Russian hit a forehand long.
Ivanovic took early control in the second set, breaking in the third game when Kuznetsova pushed a backhand wide to lead 2-1.
However, the Serb surprisingly failed to hold serve in the fourth, trailing 0-40 before being broken after a backhand flew wide.
Kuznetsova, increasingly vulnerable on her serve, was again broken in the seventh game when she netted a forehand before Ivanovic held to lead 5-3.
Serving to stay in the match, the 22-year-old Russian double-faulted to trail 0-30 before Ivanovic unleashed a crunching backhand winner for 0-40.
The Serb sealed the most prestigious victory of her career with a
service return winner down the line.—Reuters