‘Sunday will end title debate’

It would be a “fitting tribute” after all his hard work and dedication to see Andy Murray defeat old foe Novak Djokovic in the ATP World Tour Final on Sunday, believes Mark Petchey.

The world’s top two players had contrasting wins in the semi-finals at London’s O2 Arena on Saturday, with Murray surviving a match point to beat Milos Raonic 5-7 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (11-9) in three hours and 38 minutes, the longest ever three-setter in the ATP finals.

Five-time champion Djokovic needed just 66 minutes to dispatch Japan’s Kei Nishikori 6-1 6-1.

Murray arrived at the tournament needing to do better than the Serb to finish the year at the top of the rankings – a position he has held since winning the Paris Masters a fortnight ago. Now, that means winning the final.

But Sky Sports Tennis analyst Petchey feels both players have a 50-50 chance of walking away with the coveted title on Sunday evening, although he thinks the ball is well and truly in Djokovic’s court.

“They can both win, but at this minute it’s advantage Novak given the quick nature of this match and to see what Andy went through emotionally and physically against Nishikori and Raonic,” he said.

“But you can’t get away from the fact that their match-ups have been very physical. They’re both great …

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