Rafael Nadal may be set to overtake Novak
Djokovic and regain the world number one spot,
but he was beaten by his rival in the China Open
final.
An inspired Djokovic won 6-3 6-4 against his Spanish
opponent, who will move to the top of the men's
rankings on Monday after reaching the final.
The Serb, who broke in each set on his way to winning,
said: "I needed this.
"I wanted to win against Nadal, who has been the best
player so far in 2013. It's important for my
confidence."
Djokovic, who won the China Open for a fourth time,
started strongly and set the tone for the match by
breaking Nadal's first service game as he raced into a
3-0 lead.
The break proved crucial as the Serb produced some
impressive tennis, with the timing and depth of his
strokes not allowing Nadal the chance to get his game
going.
Djokovic dragged Nadal out wide with his serve and
struck a powerful forehand into open space to wrap up
the opening set after 35 minutes.
The start of the second set saw Djokovic immediately
break the Spaniard again and he continued to hold the
initiative in commanding style.
He took the following game to love and, as Nadal
struggled to put pressure on his serve, went on to
secure an emphatic win.
Djokovic added: "It's been an incredible week again at
the China Open and I still haven't lost a match here - I
just love the conditions, the court and the atmosphere
that goes around the tournament.
"I managed to stay tough and not drop my
concentration, which I think [happened] in both
Montreal and at the US Open in the important
moments.
"I've learnt my lesson from a few very tough and close
matches that I lost against Rafa on hard courts,
especially the last one in the US Open final."
Nadal, who will return to the top of the rankings for the
first time since July 2011, failed to engineer a break
point as his run of 21 matches unbeaten came to an
end in Beijing.
He said: "I couldn't see a way to stop him and he was
too strong for me.
"I didn't play my best match. It was difficult to create
spin on this ball and he was able to hit all the balls
where he wanted.
"When that's happening against a player like Novak,
you are dead - you don't have a chance."
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