Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner served up a 200-minute feast of tennis in the China Open final which was a fantastic example of how the ATP can serve up classic matches that matter outside of Grand Slam events.
It’s not often a three-setter final can rival a Marvel film on duration and entertainment, but there have been some bumper clashes on the ATP Tour.
1) Novak Djokovic v Carlos Alcaraz: 2023 Cincinnati Open
This one needed a huge vat of popcorn and the super-size cinematic drinks even before a deciding set.
Weeks after their five-set epic at Wimbledon in 2023, Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic offered more five-star entertainment in Cincinnati.
At a set and 4-2 up, it looked odds-on that Alcaraz would back up his first SW19 title with another win over the old warrior.
However, Djokovic served notice that he was going nowhere, fighting off a match point and winning the last two sets on two tie-breaks to come out on top 5-7 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-4). This was three hours and 49 minutes of total eye-popping brilliance.
The Spaniard saved four Championship points too. Both smiled afterwards as if they had enjoyed each other’s company. Tennis certainly did.
2) Rafael Nadal v Roger Federer: 2006 Italian Open
Once upon a time, it wasn’t just the Grand Slams that were five sets.
The Rome Masters – now the Italian Open – brought together a dominant mid-twentysomething Roger Federer and a teenage Rafael Nadal
The Swiss took the first 7-6 with some searing forehands. Nadal’s intensity on the clay claimed the next two 7-6 6-4 but Federer found a second life and his A-game to take the fourth 6-2.
Federer tried the forehand on two match points but just missed and came up short in the deciding breaker to lose 6–7, 7–6, 6–4, 2–6, 7–6.
Exhausted? That’s what young Nadal could do to players on his clay all day long.
3) Stefanos Tsitsipas v Dominic Thiem: 2019 ATP Finals
A 21-year-old Stefanos Tsitsipas played with the freshness and freedom of the next kid on the block at a throbbing London ATP finale in 2019.
The Greek had the crowd onside for a strangely unfamiliar final featuring his debut appearance and Austria’s Dominic Thiem, winner of five titles that year.
Tsitsipas had beaten Roger Federer in the semi-final and recovered from losing a shootout in the first to level the match.
He then repelled a late Thiem fightback to hold his nerve in another breaker to win 6-7 6-2 7-6. The Greek Adonis has never shone brighter.
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4) Novak Djokovic v Roger Federer: 2014 Indian Wells
Roger Federer always had a slight edge over Novak Djokovic – until the Serb started saving match points in US Open semi-finals and taking Wimbledon titles off the Swiss.
The 2014 Indian Wells final came at a classic time when their head-to-head numbers were almost identical. Federer lost the first set but rallied from a break down to level in a tight tie-break.
Djokovic began to get agitated by the crowd. You know what happens next.
Maybe he pretended they were calling Novak and not Roger as the World No. 1 stormed to the title in a 3–6, 6–3, 7–6 victory.
5) Novak Djokovic v Rafael Nadal: 2011 Miami Open
Djokovic’s 2011 was a year from the Gods as he dominated everything, winning three majors and ending with a 10-1 record against Federer and Nadal.
The Serb even managed to claim the coveted Sunshine Double winning at Indian Wells and Miami against the Spaniard.
The latter was a classic match which the Serb took 4-6 6-3 7-6 in 200 minutes to extend his unbeaten start to 24-0.
Nadal said: “I think he’ll be number one.” The man from Murcia was right as he just couldn’t find the key to defeating the Serb for seven consecutive matches.
6) Juan Martin Del Potro v Roger Federer: 2018 Indian Wells
Juan Martin del Potro only claimed a single major in his career, but that was a memorable one against Roger Federer at the U.S. Open in 2009.
The Argentinian always fancied his chances against the Swiss and claimed his first-ever Masters 1000 title in 2018 when Federer held two match points at Indian Wells and failed to serve it out at 5-4 in the third set.
The Fed Express came off the rails in the tie-break, serving two doubles, and Del Potro’s victory was popular even among the pro-Swiss crowd.
Injuries prevented more days like this for one of the most popular players on tour.
7) Andy Murray v John Isner: 2016 Paris Masters
2016 was quite the year for Andy Murray as he won his second Wimbledon, his second Olympics singles and claimed a further seven ATP titles.
The one that cemented his position at the top of the tree was a three-set victory over American giant John Isner at the Paris Masters.
So good was he that Murray managed to win only six points on Isner’s serve in the first set – but still took it 6-3.
Isner edged a second set tie-break but a clinical Scot broke at 4-4 in the decider and served it out to become world No 1.
Life never got better than this on the court for the Scot. Nice memories though