Novak Djokovic may be the most successful player in ATP Finals history, but he has not been successful in all of his appearances at the year-end tournament.
Djokovic currently has questions hanging over his ATP Finals participation this year, where he would be making a record-equalling 17th appearance.
Despite still not confirming if he will compete in Turin, Djokovic has already learnt his draw for the ATP Finals.
If Djokovic does play at the ATP Finals this year, he will be hoping to avoid a similar fate to what happened on his debut in 2007.
Novak Djokovic lost all of his matches in straight sets in his ATP Finals debut in 2007
Djokovic made his debut at the ATP Finals in 2007, when it was called the Tennis Masters Cup and was held in Shanghai, when he was just 20 years old.
It had been a breakout season for Djokovic, who reached his first Grand Slam final at the US Open, and won his first two Masters 1000 titles to qualify for the ATP Finals as the third seed behind Federer and Nadal.
Djokovic was drawn into a group with Nadal, David Ferrer and Richard Gasquet, all players he had beaten before.
However, things did not go the way that Djokovic was hoping, all starting off with his straight sets defeat to Ferrer.
This set the trend for Djokovic, who would also lose to Gasquet and then his last match to Nadal, and did not win more than four games in a set.
| Novak Djokovic’s matches at the 2007 ATP Finals | Result |
| David Ferrer | Ferrer beat Djokovic, 6-4 6-4 |
| Richard Gasquet | Gasquet beat Djokovic, 6-2 6-4 |
| Rafael Nadal | Nadal beat Djokovic, 6-4 6-4 |
Although this is not the only time that Djokovic has failed to qualify from his round-robin group, it is the only year where he has failed to win a single match.
Djokovic has won seven titles in his career at the ATP Finals, which is more than any other player in history.
This includes Djokovic winning his first ATP Finals title in 2008, just one year later after his poor showing at the prestigious tournament.
What Novak Djokovic said about his struggles against Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in 2007
Djokovic, Nadal and Federer have dominated men’s tennis in the 21st century, but that was not to be known in 2007.
This was before Djokovic had even won his Grand Slam title, and as the youngest of the three he struggled against both Nadal and Federer in the early days.
Despite Djokovic getting his first win over Federer in 2007, his head-to-head against both players was very one-sided and not in his favour.
After losing to Nadal to confirm his winless exit from the ATP Finals, Djokovic was asked about his difficulties against the two players ranked above him.
“I have learned a lot this year, especially against those two players, matches with those two players,” Djokovic said in his post-match press conference. “I’m not really regretting on anything I did this year. I’ve said it was unexpected. I’m just still 20 years old. I still have to develop into the professional player, of course.
“I’m number three of the world, but still I need a little something more, you know, probably in my physical strength, try to be consistent with the results on all the surfaces ’cause we all know how dominant those two players are.
“One thing is for sure: I’m going to work hard in the next period so I can get ready for them and all the players in the world for next year.”
| Novak Djokovic | Vs Roger Federer | Vs Rafael Nadal |
| Up to and including 2007 | 6-1 Federer | 6-2 Nadal |
| After 2007 | 26-17 Djokovic | 29-23 Djokovic |
| Overall | 27-23 Djokovic | 31-29 Djokovic |
Federer would go on to win the ATP Finals that year, but it was Djokovic who turned his head-to-head against both players.
Their matches are something that have recently been spoken about, with Nadal claiming his matches against Federer were more interesting in comparison to Djokovic.
Both Federer and Nadal are now retired from tennis, while Djokovic still continues to compete at 38 years old.
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