Novak Djokovic of Serbia hits a shot against Gael Monfils of France during Day 6 of the Rogers Cup at the Aviva Centre on July 30, 2016 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images
World No.1 Novak Djokovic will take aim at his fourth Rogers Cup title when the Serbian superstar takes on Japan's Kei Nishikori, ranked No.6, in Sunday afternoon's final.
Djokovic, who won titles in Canada in 2007, 2011 and 2012, will try to win his seventh tournament of 2016, booking his spot in the final with a 6-3, 6-2 semi-final win over Frenchman Gael Monfils on Saturday night.
Monfils, world No.14 and the 10th-seed in Toronto, was less stellar than he'd been on Friday night when he knocked off hometown favourite Milos Raonic in the quarterfinals, 6-4, 6-4. That inspired performance by the Frenchman erased the possibility of a highly-coveted Saturday night showdown between the Canadian Wimbledon finalist and Djokovic.
On Saturday, Djokovic put on a clinic before the reported sellout crowd at York University's Aviva Centre. His achievements are mind-boggling. He has now advanced to the final in 14 of his last 15 ATP Masters 1000 appearances, winning 10 of those titles. He's won both the French and Australian Opens this year – part of his 12 total Grand Slam titles. He has surpassed 200 weeks at No.1 and $100-million in career prize money.
The 29-year-old Serbian came to Toronto off an uncharacteristic Wimbledon showing, where he was defeated by American Sam Querrey in the third round, ending his quest for the 2016 Grand Slam bid and a 30-match win streak at Majors.
Djokovic is 9-2 all-time against Nishikori. The last time the Japanese star beat Djokovic was at the 2014 U.S. Open.
Nishikori, the event's third seed, easily took care of Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka, ranked No. 5 and seeded second, in their Saturday afternoon semi-final, 7-6, 6-1. The 26-year-old Japanese player gutted out a tough first set decided by a tiebreaker, then cruised through the second set to victory.
Nishikori has just one title this season – earned in the hardcourts in Memphis – but 11 in his career. Djokovic joked after that this matchup with thrill Uniqlo, the Japanese clothing label that sponsors both players.
The last two Canadians standing in the Rogers Cup fell Saturday night. The doubles team of Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil – the sixth-seeded team in the tournament, lost in three sets to the second-seeded team of Bruno Soares of Brazil and Jamie Murray from Great Britain, the elder brother of world No.2 Andy Murray. Soares and Murray will play in Sunday's doubles final against Croatia's Ivan Dodig and Marcelo Melo of Brazil, the third-seeded team in Toronto.
While the two Canadians were not pleased with how they played in their semi-final loss, they leave Toronto with a positive outlook on the next few weeks.
Pospisil and Nestor leave Monday for Rio, where they will be Canada's doubles team in the Summer Olympics. Nestor was added to Canada's team after Raonic withdrew. The 43-year-old doubles veteran has competed in five Olympic Games, winning a gold medal in Sydney in 2000. Pospisil has one Games under his belt – London 2012.
Nestor compared how he felt after Saturday's loss to how he felt after leaving the 2000 U.S. Open on a loss and heading into the Sydney Olympics.
"It's maybe not as exciting for the athlete that's going for the first or second time, but it's exciting for me because I think we have a chance to win a medal," Nestor said. "Maybe I can take something from what happened the previous tournament at the U.S. Open that time. I felt like we left a lot out there, Lareau and I. We really, you know, came together when it mattered most for the Olympics. And maybe today, maybe we feel like we left a little bit out there, and maybe, you know, we'll bring our best when it's most important there."
Rachel Brady