Rafa Nadal crashes out against Tsonga in Shanghai

Rafael Nadal of Spain hits a return shot against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga of France during their semifinal match of the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai, China, Saturday, October 17, 2015.

Tsonga trails 6-13 to Djokovic in the head-to-head, but after losing nine in a row to the Serb, he did win their last encounter in the third round of last year’s Canada Masters.

The titles keep on coming for Novak Djokovic, who won his ninth of the year at the Shanghai Masters on Sunday.

The rare Djokovic errors gave Tsonga a break of his own, but he immediately handed back the initiative to the Serb, who calmly served out to love for 6-2 and a one-set lead.

The Frenchman defended two break points, but it was third time lucky for Djokovic who crucially gave himself the chance to serve for the trophy, which he took. The big French player is incredibly risky when he gets on a roll, but inspiration can come and go.

“It’s one match. If I win it, I’m the champion this week”. “But knowing that I have a final tomorrow, I am very pleased and satisfied with how I played, but I have to focus already on the next one”.

“I’m very satisfied. To come back at your best level, it’s always a long process”. “Today I didn’t serve well enough, especially in the first set. I just couldn’t get myself in it. Even the second set got that break at the beginning and was hoping to kick on a little bit. That’s what I’m focusing on and I’m trying to use the good sensation on the court, the confidence that I have from many wins throughout the season, in every match I play”. “The feelings are that I am getting better and better”.

“I know that one of the things that you have to do in order to keep playing on a high level is stay, committed and stay determined about this lifestyle”.

The win brought him the 57th title on the ATP tour and also helped Djokovic improve to 14-6 against Tsonga in their head-to-head rivalry.

Nadal, meanwhile, further solidified his place among the elite eight in his quest to qualify for the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for an eighth time, following a run to the final last week in Beijing with a semi-final finish in Shanghai.