the same relentless metronome he has always been
Wimbledon Champion Novak Djokovic had just levelled the semi-final at one set a piece, after edging the tie break 8-6, when Daniil Medvedev seemingly threw in the towel from nowhere.
Djokovic was visibly confused and in his post-match interview said: "I'm still surprised he retired. He looked completely fine. I really hope his injury is nothing too serious. I know Daniil, he's a great guy, he's a fighter, he wouldn't retire if he didn't feel he couldn't continue."
He would go on to face Tsitsipas in the final, who needed three sets to overcome Andrey Rublev in his semi-final, but had been showing strong form throughout the tournament. Tsitsipas had only beaten Djokovic twice in nine matches or make that ten matches now, as Djokovic cruised to a straight sets win over the Greek starlet.
For Djokovic, this Astana victory represented a second successive ATP tour triumph after winning in the Tel Aviv open only a week prior. The Serbian hasn't been short of off-court controversy in recent years, but on-court, he is the same relentless metronome he has always been.
The win marks Djokovic's third successive winner's trophy in Kazakhstan, as he draws closer to Federer's record of most ATP titles.
