Day-by-day summaries of the 2009 ATP World Tour Finals

Main article: 2009 ATP World Tour Finals

Round robin

Day 1: November 22, 2009

Andy Murray claims victory over Juan Martín del Potro

The tournament started with group A doubles action. In the opening match the top doubles team and defending champions Nestor/Zimonjić being upset by Fyrstenberg/Matkowski 6–4, 6–4. The Polish team faced no break points.

In the first singles match, 2008 semifinalist Murray fought del Potro. Murray went up 5-0 over Del Potro, who took a medical timeout at 3-0, for a nosebleed. Del Potro went down 15-40, but eventually saved two set points and won the game. At 5-1, on the second break point Del Potro challenged Murray's apparent ace and won the break. Both players then held, giving Murray the first set 6-3. In the second set, Del Potro looked rejuvenated taking the first 3 games even breaking at love in the second game. Murray broke in the 5th game to bring it back to serve. The Argentine broke again and held to lead 5-2. Both players held, requiring a third set. The decider saw a change of roles as Murray broke in the second game at his second chance to lead 3-0. The servers held the next four games to 5-2. At 5-2 Del Potro went down 15-30, and then double-faulted, giving Murray 2 match points. Murray converted the second.

Number 3 Bhupathi/Knowles dominated Čermák/Mertiňák 6-3, 6-3.

Federer/Verdasco started with Verdasco breaking Federer and holding to lead 2-0. At 3-2, Verdasco was warned for taking too much time. Verdasco held for a 4-2 lead. In the next game Federer saved two break points. The two players then held, giving Verdasco the set, 6-4. In the second set both players held serve comfortably to 6-5, when Federer broke to win the set 7-5. In the 3rd, Federer took a 5-0 lead and won 4-6, 7-5, 6-1.

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Winner	Loser	Score
Doubles - Group A	Mariusz Fyrstenberg [8] Marcin Matkowski [8]	Daniel Nestor [1] Nenad Zimonjić [1]	6–4, 6–4
Singles - Group A	Andy Murray [4]	Juan Martín del Potro [5]	6–3, 3–6, 6–2
Doubles - Group A	Mahesh Bhupathi [3] Mark Knowles [3]	František Čermák [5] Michal Mertiňák [5]	6–3, 6–3
Singles - Group A	Roger Federer [1]	Fernando Verdasco [7]	4–6, 7–5, 6–1
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:15 pm, 3rd at 7:00 pm and 4th at 8:45 pm

Day 2: November 23, 2009

Nadal/Söderling was a sequel to the 4th round of the French. Söderling broke in the second game and led 3-0, quickly reversed by Nadal for 3-3. From there both players held to 5-4. At 40-30 Nadal made three unforced errors, giving Söderling the first at 6-4. In the second set Nadal broke in the 3rd game for 2-1. Nadal then saved two break points before Söderling challenged a backhand from Nadal. Both players then held. At 5-4 Nadal faced match point at 30-40, which Söderling converted to win the set 6-4 and the match.

Novak Djokovic avenged his Shanghai loss

The final match repeated last year's final pitting Djokovic against Davydenko. At 2-2 in the 1st Davydenko broke at love. Then the Russian saved one break point for 4-2. Both then held. Djokovic faced two set points and gave Davydenko the first set 6-3. At 2-2 on serve in the 2nd Davydenko saved two break points to lead 3-2. At 4-4 Davydenko's unforced errors gave Djokovic a break and he served out the set 6-4. In the decider Djokovic broke early for 2-0. He served for the match at 5-4 but Davydenko broke back. Djokovic broke back and served the match out.

The doubles competition produced two upsets as Mirnyi/Ram beat World no. 2 the Bryans, 6–4, 6–4. Kubot/Marach defeated Dlouhý/Paes in straight sets.

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Winner	Loser	Score
Doubles - Group B	Max Mirnyi [7] Andy Ram [7]	Bob Bryan [2] Mike Bryan [2]	6–4, 6–4
Singles - Group B	Robin Söderling [8]	Rafael Nadal [2]	6–4, 6–4
Doubles - Group B	Łukasz Kubot [6] Oliver Marach [6]	Lukáš Dlouhý [4] Leander Paes [4]	6–4, 7–6(3)
Singles - Group B	Novak Djokovic [3]	Nikolay Davydenko [6]	3–6, 6–4, 7–5
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:15 pm, 3rd at 7:00 pm and 4th at 8:45 pm

Day 3: November 24, 2009

The next day del Potro and Verdasco played each other for the first time. In the 3rd game del Potro broke at 15. Both held giving del Potro the first set 6-4. At 4-3 in the second Verdasco converted the first break point to lead 5-3. Verdasco won 6-3 triggering a deciding set. Verdasco went down 3-2 and 0-40. He saved 2 break points but at 30-40, del Potro challenged a Verdasco forehand called in. Hawk-Eye reversed the call giving del Potro a 4-2 lead. Verdasco saved match point at 5-2, then Verdasco broke and held to level the set at 5-5. Del Potro won the eventual tie-break 7-1.

Roger Federer claims fourth win over Murray

Federer then took on Murray. Both players immediately broke, then at 3-2 Federer held only 2 of 3 break points. The first set went to Murray 6-3. In the 6th game of the second set the Swiss was able to break and served it out for 6-3. Federer then broke in the third, fifth and seventh games to finish 6-1.

Bhupathi/Knowles outlasted Fyrstenberg/Matkowski 3–6, 6–3, [10–7], taking them to the semifinal. Defending champions Nestor/Zimonjić lost to Čermák/Mertiňák 6–3, 6–4.

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Winner	Loser	Score
Doubles - Group A	Mahesh Bhupathi [3] Mark Knowles [3]	Mariusz Fyrstenberg [8] Marcin Matkowski [8]	3–6, 6–3, [10–7]
Singles - Group A	Juan Martín del Potro [5]	Fernando Verdasco [7]	6–4, 3–6, 7–6(1)
Doubles - Group A	František Čermák [5] Michal Mertiňák [5]	Daniel Nestor [1] Nenad Zimonjić [1]	6–3, 6–4
Singles - Group A	Roger Federer [1]	Andy Murray [4]	3–6, 6–3, 6–1
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:15 pm, 3rd at 7:00 pm and 4th at 8:45 pm

Day 4: November 25, 2009

Robin Söderling advances to the semifinals with first victory over Djokovic

First Söderling battled Djokovic. No break opportunities emerged until 5-4 when Djokovic saved 3. In the following tie-break, the Swede took a 2-0 lead and then the Serb took three. Söderling got a mini-break for 6-4, and won at 7-5. Djokovic then won the opening game but then Söderling won the next six to advance to the Semifinal.

The next match was a Shanghai final rematch between Davydenko and Nadal. Davydenko raced into a 3-0 lead. In the 6th game Davydenko broke again, and served it out at 6-1. Davydenko broke Nadal in the 5th game of the 2nd and then saved two break points in the 6th for 4-2. Nadal then broke Davydenko to level it at 4-4. Both held through to a tie break. Nadal got a mini-break for 2-1, but gave it back for 3-3. Davydenko then broke for 5-3. Davydenko converted his second match point to win at 7-4. For the first time in his World Tour Finals history, Nadal failed to reach the semifinal.

In Doubles, in the first match Kubot/Marach outlasted Mirnyi/Ram in a marathon 4–6, 6–4, [16–14] to advance in the top spot. The second match saw the Bryans eliminated Dlouhý/Paes.

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Winner	Loser	Score
Doubles - Group B	Łukasz Kubot [6] Oliver Marach [6]	Max Mirnyi [7] Andy Ram [7]	4–6, 6–4, [16–14]
Singles - Group B	Robin Söderling [8]	Novak Djokovic [3]	7–6(5), 6–1
Doubles - Group B	Bob Bryan [2] Mike Bryan [2]	Lukáš Dlouhý [4] Leander Paes [4]	6–3, 6–4
Singles - Group B	Nikolay Davydenko [6]	Rafael Nadal [2]	6–1, 7–6(4)
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:15 pm, 3rd at 7:00 pm and 4th at 8:45 pm

Day 5: November 26, 2009

Murray played Verdasco, hoping for a straight set shot through to the semi final, leaving Federer and Del Potro to fight for the other spot. A loss for Murray would eliminate him. And a 3 set win required a complicated tie break.

In the first 8 games, Murray failed to convert multiple break points. In the 9th game, Murray finally succeeded and served it out for 6-4. Verdasco saved break points in the fifth game for 3-2. Verdasco saved two more break points in the 11th game, leading to a tie-break. Verdasco won the early lead 4-2 but Murray recovered to reach 4-5 on serve. Verdasco won the next point before Murray double faulted to give Verdasco the set. In the third Verdaso save the only break point in the second. Verdasco double faulted to give Murray a 4-2 lead who held on to win the breaker 7-3.

Juan Martín del Potro advance to the semifinals with Federer

The last match repeated US Open final as Federer took on del Potro. Del Potro broke in the 1st and 5th games thanks to a Federer double fault, winning the opening set 6-2. Federer saved a break point in the next game, eventually reaching a tie break. Del Potro claimed a 4-2 lead, but Federer fought back to win 7-5. That put Federer into the semi final. Murray needed Federer to win 4 games in the final set for him to advance but Federer did not oblige. At 4-3 Federer went down 0-40. He saved one break point but del Potro got the next and closed out the match 6-3.

Murray was thereby out, with Federer and del Potro advancing. The 3 players won the same number of matches and leaving it to game percentage. All of the Group A matches went 3 sets.

In the doubles Nestor/Zimonjić were eliminated despite claiming their first victory over Bhupathi/Knowles at 6-4, 7-6(9). The second match saw Čermák/Mertiňák move on by defeating Fyrstenberg/Matkowski, finishing second in the group.

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Winner	Loser	Score
Doubles - Group A	Daniel Nestor [1] Nenad Zimonjić [1]	Mahesh Bhupathi [3] Mark Knowles [3]	6–4, 7–6(9)
Singles - Group A	Andy Murray [4]	Fernando Verdasco [7]	6–4, 6–7(4), 7–6(3)
Doubles - Group A	František Čermák [5] Michal Mertiňák [5]	Mariusz Fyrstenberg [8] Marcin Matkowski [8]	6–4, 6–4
Singles - Group A	Juan Martín del Potro [5]	Roger Federer [1]	6–2, 6–7(5), 6–3
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:15 pm, 3rd at 7:00 pm and 4th at 8:45 pm

Day 6: November 27, 2009

Nadal began the day by taking on Djokovic. Djokovic broke in the opening game. Nadal struck back in the next game after Djokovic saved two break points. In the third game, Djokovic broke again. In the next game, Djokovic held, taking a 3-1 lead. Nadal held and then broke. Both players then held to force a tie-break. Djokovic took the mini-break to lead 4-2 and held on for 7-5. Djokovic broke for the fourth time, gaining a 3-1 lead. Djokovic took the match at 6-3.

Nikolay Davydenko advances to the semifinals with victory over Söderling

Söderling still had to battle Davydenko, who was trying to claim the second semifinal berth. In the 7th game Davydenko failed to convert break points, as did Söderling in the next 8th, eventually leading to a tie break. There were no mini-breaks until the changeover, which was followed by three straight, giving Davydeno the set 7-4. In the 9th game of the second set Söderling broke at love and won the set 6-4, viging him the top spot in Group B. At 3-2 in the final set Davydenko broke to lead 5-2. Söderling held. At 5-3 with two match points, Davydenko double-faulted, but converted the next match point to win 6-3. This win meant that Davydenko would face Federer, becoming the only 2008 singles semifinalist to go through to the 2009 semifinals.

In doubles, Dlouhý/Paes lost their final round robin match to Mirnyi/Ram 7–6(1), 6–4. Then the Bryans had to win their match against Kubot/Marach in straight sets to reach the semi final, which they did 6–3, 6–4.

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Winner	Loser	Score
Doubles - Group B	Max Mirnyi [7] Andy Ram [7]	Lukáš Dlouhý [4] Leander Paes [4]	7–6(1), 6–4
Singles - Group B	Novak Djokovic [3]	Rafael Nadal [2]	7–6(5), 6–3
Doubles - Group B	Bob Bryan [2] Mike Bryan [2]	Łukasz Kubot [6] Oliver Marach [6]	6–3, 6–4
Singles - Group B	Nikolay Davydenko [6]	Robin Söderling [8]	7–6(4), 4–6, 6–3
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:15 pm, 3rd at 7:00 pm and 4th at 8:45 pm

Finals

Day 7: November 28, 2009

Play began when Federer and last year's runner-up Davydenko. Federer had won all 12 prior encounters. Davydenko saved two early break points. In the next game Davydenko broke, then held and broke again at love. Federer broke back immediately for 2-4. Federer saved only one of two break points, for a third consecutive break. Davydenko held for 6-2.At 5-5, Davydenko converted a break point and in the next game saved one of his own before serving it out in his first win over Federer.

Juan Martín del Potro the third Argentine to reach the year-end finals

In the evening semi, Söderling played del Potro, having split their last two meetings. In the third game Soderling saved 3 break points from 0-40 for 2-1. Both players continued to hold, creating a tie-break. Soderling went up 5-0, before winning it 7-1. At 4-3 in the second Del Potro broke Soderling and held on for 6-3. The third set saw Soderling break for lead 4-2 and Del Potro break for 4-3. From there both players held. In the tie-break del Potro went up 4-0 lead and won 7-3.

Mirnyi/Ram defeated Čermák/Mertiňák 6–4, 7–6(4) to reach the finals. Then there was an Australian finals rematch pitting the Bryans against Bhupathi/Knowles. The result was the same, with the Bryan twins taking it 6–4, 6–4.

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Winner	Loser	Score
Doubles - Semifinals	Max Mirnyi [7] Andy Ram [7]	František Čermák [5] Michal Mertiňák [5]	6–4, 7–6(4)
Singles - Semifinals	Nikolay Davydenko [6]	Roger Federer [1]	6–2, 4–6, 7–5
Doubles - Semifinals	Bob Bryan [2] Mike Bryan [2]	Mahesh Bhupathi [3] Mark Knowles [3]	6–4, 6–4
Singles - Semifinals	Juan Martín del Potro [5]	Robin Söderling [8]	6–7(1), 6–3, 7–6(3)
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:15 pm, 3rd at 7:00 pm and 4th at 8:45 pm

Day 8: November 29, 2009

The Bryans got a first set chest bump after taking the first set point on a down-the-middle backhand. A single break in game eight of the second set was enough for the brothers to serve for the match. The pair thrilled to have regained the title and the top ranking.

Nikolay Davydenko is the first Russian players to win the year-end championships

Finally, del Potro and Davydenko having both defeated Soderling, Federer, and one Spaniard along the way faced off. This was their fourth meeting, with Davydenko leading 2-1. Davydenko broke at his second chance and then easily served out the set. In the second set at 2-2, del Potro saved a break point. Davydenko did the same, for 3-3. At 4-4 Davydenko broke at love. Davydenko then served the match out for a 6-3 6-4 win. This was Davydenko's biggest title to date.

Del Potro commented "Congratulations Nikolay, you had a great week, you beat everyone and you're a great champion. Thank you the crowd, you support me a lot and helped me. I hope to see you next year." Davydenko added; "Yeah!... I just want to congratulate Martin: he had a big season. For me it was amazing, coming in as number seven and winning the tournament. I surprised myself. Maybe I now have English fans... I hope. I really enjoy coming to London, I will try to come back again." He also added "Trophy, it's always something important, you know, in career for the tennis player. Something important for me because Federer I beat in semifinals. It was a great match, good feeling. Never beat him before. And beat him once here in semifinals. But, you know, finals different".

Matches on O2 arena
Group	Champion	Runner Up	Score
Doubles - Final	Bob Bryan [2] Mike Bryan [2]	Max Mirnyi [7] Andy Ram [7]	7–6(5), 6–3
Singles - Final	Nikolay Davydenko [6]	Juan Martín del Potro [5]	6–3, 6–4
1st match starts at 12:30 pm, 2nd at 2:30 pm