All good things must come to an end. But for many, and I among those, this wasn’t the end we were hoping for. Serbian Novak Djokovic had up to this point been the only force capable of menacing the extended dominion of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal in the ATP Tour. On a sport dominated by two players in what’s now been the better part of a decade, Novak Djokovic was a breath of fresh air. And what the Djoker, as he is known, is nothing short of spectacular. The end, however, was a bit disappointing, unfortunate. The world's top-ranked player was forced to retire in the second set Sunday because of a sore right shoulder, giving Andy Murray the championship at the Western & Southern Open. This was truly his first truly bad moment in what had otherwise been a perfect season. Ok, perhaps not perfect, he obviously suffered a hiccup against Roger Federer in the Roland Garros semifinal; but heck, since that sole lost of the season in june 3rd, Novak Djokovic had won 16 games, and before he retired against Murray, he was 57-1 for the season. That’s just an amazing performance, but at the end, the winning streak took a bit too much from Djokovic, both mentally and physically, and the symptoms were showing on Sunday. Djokovic had mention that he was starting to feel a bit tired. He seemed a bit talked exhausted in Cincinnati. Let’s not forget that he was coming off his record fifth Masters series title in Montreal last week. Before the final match against Murray, Djokovic said his serving shoulder had been bothering him for the last 10 days. Still, with some physical therapy and certainly a good deal of courage he'd been able to manage the pain and keep on winning. From the very start, we knew that it wasn’t the same Djokovic we had been used to. He was certainly showing signs of fatigue and pain in the title game against the fourth-seeded Murray. It didn’t take too long for Murray to take advantage of the situation and he won the first set 6-4. Murray kept the momentum and took an early 3-0 lead in the second set when Djokovic decided just before the rain came that he couldn't continue. With his serve registering only in double-digits and his forehand limited by the pain, Djokovic realized he couldn't compete. The big question now is what Novak Djokovic’s performance going to be like in a few more days, when he faces the last Grand Slam of the season, the US Open at Flushing Meadows. The good news, if you will, is that one of his strongest contenders, and the defending Champion, Rafael Nadal, Rafael Nadal also has got some physical issues that could keep him from playing at his best. Truth is that Nadal is struggling with burned fingertips on his right hand that bothered him in Cincinnati. On the press conference after the game Djokovic said: "Dear friends and fans, I want to apologise to all of you who expected a better and longer match today. Shoulder could not take it anymore, and it didn't make sense to continue. Congratulation to Andy Murray for successful week."
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