Alexander Zverev defeated world no.1 Novak Djokovic 6-4, 6-3 to win his first ATP Finals title on Sunday.
Djokovic, who had not been broken once in the tournament, won all 36 service games and faced two break points, but Zverev wrecked his numbers, breaking four times in the match. The Serb was seeking to equal Roger Federer's record of six ATP Finals wins. Zverev was making his second appearance at the end-of-the-season showpiece.
The 21-year-old German had outlasted six-time champion Roger Federer in the semifinals to take on Djokovic. He had beaten Zverev 6-4, 6-1 in their round-robin match on Wednesday.
The first set went with serve until the ninth game, when Djokovic dumped a forehand into the net to concede the break. Then, Zverev hit three aces on his way to sealing the first set 6-4.
The Serb managed to break Zverev early on in the second set, but an out-of-sorts Djokovic was broken soon after.
Zverev then double-faulted twice in his next service game as Djokovic got back on level terms but the German broke again to lead 2-1 as the Serb's error count mounted.
Zverev broke Djokovic for the third time in the second set in the ninth game, producing a stunning backhand down the line at full stretch to win the championship.
“I really can't describe it,” said Zverev. “It is the biggest title I have ever won. Firstly, I want to congratulate Novak and we may never have seen the tennis he has played in the last few months before. He barely lost a match but thankfully he did to me.”
“Sascha (Zverev) definitely played much better than he did in the group stage,” he said. “He deserved to win. He's still quite young but he's had an amazing career so far and I wish him all the best for his future.”
The young German has often been talked about as the leader of the next generation but despite having three Masters titles under his belt in his short career, he has a poor record at the Grand Slams.