Indian Wells: Novak Djokovic arrived at the BNP Paribas Open a day and a half later than he had planned and in a state of exhaustion, the result of a busy schedule that included playing for Serbia in the Davis Cup, and his concern about an eye injury that forced him to retire from a tournament in Dubai last month.
If there was even a small chance the No. 1 player in the world might be vulnerable, it was here at Indian Wells. He didn't quash those questions when he dropped the first four games and the first set of his initial match, against 22-year-old American qualifier Bjorn Fratangelo.
Any doubts about his fitness or focus soon melted in the desert heat. From that point on Djokovic was his usual masterful self, not losing another set and capping his effort Sunday with a 6-2, 6-0 victory over big-serving Milos Raonic of Canada for his third straight title at this tournament and record fifth here overall.
"Once I was here I was starting to feel much better, and I ended out the tournament in the way that I wanted," Djokovic said after losing only three points on serve in the second set of his 88-minute triumph over the No. 12 seed. "It has obviously been a great couple of weeks. To win this tournament five times is a fantastic achievement for my team and I.
"We don't take anything for granted, especially because this tournament has been, for many, many players, a favorite tournament. You know, all the top players each year competing and trying to win it. It's just behind the Grand Slams in terms of organization, the quality of facilities, the conditions."
Raonic, ranked 14th in the world, started the year well by beating Roger Federer in a final in Brisbane and reaching the semifinal of the Australian Open. He continued that surge by winning 10 of 11 sets to reach the Indian Wells final against the roadblock that is Djokovic.
From the start, when Djokovic won the first four games, it was apparent Raonic wouldn't record his first victory over Djokovic in six tries. Djokovic closed the set in 43 minutes, and Raonic needed a treatment before he could return for the second set. He had been bothered recently by an adductor muscle problem and wasn't sure whether his difficulty on Sunday was a recurrence of that problem, or something new.
Either way, he didn't pin his loss on that. "I don't think it affected my effort. I thought he played much better than I did," Raonic said.
Although Raonic's booming serve often gives opponents problems, Djokovic wasn't fazed by it Sunday. "He's the best returner, probably, of all time," Raonic said. "Not only is he good when the ball is close to him, he's even very good when it's far away from him, making you play and neutralizing the point very well in that situation."
Djokovic's title was his third this season, following wins over Rafael Nadal at Doha and Andy Murray at the Australian Open, and was his 27th ATP Masters 1000 title, tying him with Nadal for the most in a career. They're two ahead of Federer.
At the moment, Djokovic is well ahead of the rest of the men's field. He said he was in the zone Sunday, and no one can question that. "I'm just glad to be able to raise the level of my game as the tournament progresses," he said, "and that's something that I have been doing in the last two years, particularly on the big events."
(c)2016 Los Angeles Times
