TWL Stat Let: Lucky Loser Lorenzo, Novak the Number One King, and Rublev Romps On

Novak Djokovic v Andrey Rublev predictions and tips
Photo Credit Ken W Maynard on VisualHunt CC BY

With two ATP tournaments going on concurrently – 2020 Astana Open and the 2020 Vienna Open – a lot happened in both of those tournaments. There were seeded shocks, career comebacks made, dominant performances, fairy-tale runs, and records set. Here are a few statistical highlights and records of the week.

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Lorenzo Sonego: A Lucky Loser With A Title Chance

After losing the last round of Qualifying, Lorenzo Sonego was destined to go home but a last-minute exit from Diego Schwartzman gave him a chance in the tournament. He seems to have relished that opportunity and has a shot at the title on Sunday. He’s won all his four matches in straight sets, but none more impressive than his 6-1, 6-2 quarterfinal win over top seed Novak Djokovic.

To put that into perspective, Sonego became the first lucky loser to defeat Djokovic (1-12), and the first lucky loser to defeat a world no. 1 since 2017. In history, only on one occasion has the World No. 1 collected fewer games in a loss.

Tournament Winner Loser Score
Lakeway (1974) Cliff Richey Ilie Năstase 6-1, 6-1
Vienna (2020) Lorenzo Sonego Novak Djokovic 6-2, 6-1
Masters (1980) Gene Mayer Björn Borg 6-0, 6-3
Las Vegas WCT (1978) Jeff Borowiak Jimmy Connors 6-3, 6-0
Munich WCT (1983) Mark Dickson Ivan Lendl 6-1, 6-2
Scottsdale (2000) Francisco Clavet Andre Agassi 6-1, 6-2

Additionally, that was Djokovic’s joint-worst defeat in his career. It was only the second time in his career that he managed to win just three games in a match, the previous occasion coming against Marat Safin at the 2005 Australian Open. He averaged just 1 game per set in that 2005 match and 1.5 games per set in his recent defeat to Sonego.

Lorenzo Sonego now becomes the 17th Lucky Loser to reach an ATP Final since 1990, and aims to become the eighth lucky loser to win a tournament the most recent being Marco Cecchinato who won the 2018 Hungarian Open. He plays Andrey Rublev, who also won his first title as a lucky loser.

Djokovic’s Mixed Week

The world number one may have had a bitter end to the week, but he did manage to earn another record in the process. After his second-round win over Borna Coric, he all but guaranteed himself a season-ending ATP No. 1 spot—unless Rafael Nadal enters Sofia as a wild card.

He’ll become the oldest player to do so surpassing Nadal’s age when he ended the season top in 2019, and will also tie Pete Sampras’ record of 6 seasons as year-end Number one.

Player Total Seasons Ended As No. 1
Pete Sampras 6
Novak Djokovic 6*
Jimmy Connors 5
Rafael Nadal 5
Roger Federer 5

His three losses in an entire season is also an impressive record, but there have also been fewer tournaments this year.

Rising Rumblev Roars Again

Andrey Rublev’s win against Kevin Anderson was his 14th straight ATP 500 level win, and he is 18-1 in his last four tournaments. He has also held serve throughout the entire tournament in all of his 28 games. He has a 100% record in semi-finals and finals this year: 5-0 in the semis and 4-0 in the finals.

A title win in Vienna will give him five ATP titles for the year, surpassing the four that he’s tied on with Djokovic. It will also be his 39th win of the tour, tying the current record of 39 wins held by the Serb.

Lastly, if he does manage to defeat Sonego, that will all but guarantee him a spot in the ATP finals in London.

About Arden Rey 87 Articles
Lover of all different types of sports, and a self certified stat geek.

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