Novak Djokovic defeated Kevin Anderson 6-2, 6-2 on Saturday to advance to the championship match of the ATP Finals for the seventh time.

Djokovic is now 35-2 since the start of Wimbledon, a stretch during which he has won four titles and returned to the No 1 spot in the ATP rankings for the first time since the week of 31 October 2016.

Djokovic pressured Anderson from the first game of the match, scrambling around the baseline to neutralise all of the South African’s shots. The Serb broke when Anderson went for too much on a forehand down the line and launched his stroke long. The world No 1 broke for a second time when Anderson missed another forehand while Djokovic did not face break-point in the 39-minute opener.

If Anderson had any hope of battling to a decider, they slimmed out significantly when he was broken to start the second set. Djokovic got his fourth break of the match in the fifth game and held his serve to take a commanding 5-1 lead in the second. Anderson did not manage a single break-point on Djokovic’s serve as the Serbian dominated the South African in a one-sided victory.

The world No 1 will go into Sunday’s final against Alexander Zverev (who defeated Roger Federer in straight sets) full of confidence.

He has won all eight sets he has played at The O2 this year, with only one of those sets going past 6-4. The 72-time tour-level champion has advanced to the final without losing a match on four previous occasions, winning the title three times.

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