Djokovic Sets ATP Tour Prize-Money Record With Victory in U.S. Open Final
Novak Djokovic lifted his 2011 prize money to an ATP World Tour-record $10.6 million with his victory two days ago in the U.S. Open tennis final.
The 24-year-old Serb, who’s ranked No. 1 in the world, collected $1.8 million for beating 2010 champion Rafael Nadal in the final and also secured a $500,000 bonus for finishing atop the U.S. Open Series standings.
Djokovic also won the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year and was a semifinalist at the French Open, taking his 2011 earnings from the four Grand Slam events to $6.2 million. Djokovic improved his match record this season to 64-2 with the win over Nadal, which made him the sixth man to take three of the four major titles in a calendar year.
“The amount of matches that I lost this year is just incredible,” Djokovic told reporters at the National Tennis Center in New York after the final. “It’s definitely going to take a lot of effort to try to repeat even half of what I have done this year for next year.”
Djokovic’s earnings in 2011 eclipse the previous record of $10.2 million Nadal set last year. The Spaniard needed 17 tournaments to reach that amount, compared with 12 for Djokovic. The only other player to earn $10 million in prize money in a season was record 16-time major champion Roger Federer, who made $10.1 million from 16 tournaments in 2007.
Djokovic has won 10 tournaments in 2011, including a record five ATP World Tour Masters titles.
The U.S. Open victory took his career earnings to $38.9 million.
To contact the reporter on this story: Dex McLuskey in Dallas at dmcluskey@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Michael Sillup at msillup@bloomberg.net
Novak Djokovic of Serbia
Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates with the trophy after he defeated Rafael Nadal of Spain during the Men's Final on Day Fifteen of the 2011 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York.
Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates with the trophy after he defeated Rafael Nadal of Spain during the Men's Final on Day Fifteen of the 2011 US Open at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in New York. Photographer: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
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