13. 06. 2010. ·
Novak Djokovic and Jonathan Erlich captured the AEGON Championships trophy in doubles competition on team debut.
The Serbian/Israeli pair came back from a set down to defeat Karol Beck and David Skoch 6-7(6), 6-2, 10-3 in 90 minutes.
Djokovic and Erlich failed to convert two break/set points in the 12th game of the first set, so it went into a tie-breaker. Beck and Skoch were more successful and took it 8-6.
Novak and Erlich broke their opponents’ serve twice in the second set and closed it convincingly 6-2 in just 25 minutes.
The Serbian/Israeli combination continued their domination in super tie-breaker. They won it 10-3 to capture the doubles title at the ATP World Tour 250 tournament in London.
“Every match tie-break was incredible, we played with so much focus and determination. I was lucky to be playing with one of the best players in the world,” said Djokovic after the match. “It’s a first grass court title for me, in singles or doubles. I’d been in two finals. It’s important to me,” added the 23-year-old Belgrade native.
“I’m very excited, I’d been waiting to win that title for a long time, two years,” said Erlich. “I want to thank Novak, he wanted to play with me. He’s a good friend, it has been an honour and I’ve enjoyed every minute.”
The winners get 250 ATP points. Nole will climb up the doubles rankings on Monday, he is currently ranked #393.
Djokovic will enter Wimbledon (June 21-July 4) with seven grass-court matches under his belt, two in singles and five in doubles.
