August 13, 2012 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Photo credit: Kenneth B. Goldberg
Novak Djokovic of Serbia defeated Richard Gasquet of France 6-3 6-2 to win the Toronto Masters on Sunday in his North American hard court season debut. Djokovic is the reigning champion of the Canadian tournament winning it last year as well. Djokovic held serve during the entire 61-minute match. Gasquet was overwhelmed by an array of shots made my Djokovic. It was just 12 months ago that the top-seeded Serb won the tournament when it was held in Montreal.
Many players, including Djokovic, competing in the Toronto Masters had little time to prepare for the tournament after playing in the London Olympics. Numerous rain delays forced the playing schedule to change drastically.
“It’s a big tournament, one of the biggest we have in tennis. I’m very happy to be in this position,” said Djokovic. “I truly did not expect myself to win this tournament after the emotional losses in the Olympic Games. I really took it hard. I tried to bounce back and recover; I’ve done great, I have to say.”
Djokovic shouted in triumph in the last game as Gasquet sent a return shot long. Among those in the crowd was Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
The world number two broke Gasquet three times during the match and winning 84 percent of his first service points. This is Djokovic’s third win in Canada in the past five years and 12th career ATP Masters title. Djokovic dropped only one service game this week, holding serve in 50 of 51 games. Djokovic now looks to keep his U.S. Open title during the next few weeks in New York. Last year, he defeated Roger Federer in the finals.
