Novak Djokovic is vying for his 101st career ATP singles title at the 2025 Hellenic Championship in Athens this week. The 24-time Major winner will have to be wary of Alejandro Tabilo in his tournament opener, as the Chilean has yet to drop a match against him and can join an exclusive list of players, including Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, with another win.
Djokovic is looking to end this year on a high note, with the Hellenic Championship and the ATP Finals marking his last two tournaments of the 2025 season. Seeded first in Athens, the 38-year-old will be eager to go all the way at the 250-level event and get into top gear for his 17th year-end championships appearance in Turin. A familiar foe in Alejandro Tabilo, who holds a 2-0 edge in their head-to-head meetings, stands in his way, though.
Tabilo got the better of the former world No. 1 in their two career meetings at the 2024 Rome Masters and the 2025 Monte-Carlo Masters. More concerningly, the world No. 5 has never won a set against his younger opponent. Earlier on Sunday, Nov. 2, the former world No. 19 needed three hours to down Australia’s Adam Walton 7-6(7), 6-7(6), 7-5 in the first round of this week’s Hellenic Championship.
Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Andy Murray and Three Other Players Have Beaten Novak Djokovic 3x in a Row
For his efforts, he will now have a chance to beat Novak Djokovic for the third successive time. This is a rather rare feat that has been achieved by only six active and retired players on the ATP Tour: Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Jannik Sinner, Andy Roddick, and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Nadal trails Djokovic 29-31 in their head-to-head record, but has secured at least three wins in a row against the Serb on five occasions. The Spaniard won three back-to-back matches in their rivalry in 2007 (Rome Masters, French Open, Wimbledon), three in 2008 (Hamburg Masters, French Open, Queen’s Championships), five in 2008-09 (Beijing Olympics, Davis Cup, Monte-Carlo Masters, Rome Masters, Madrid Masters), three in 2012 (Monte-Carlo Masters, Rome Masters, French Open), and three in 2013 (French Open, Montreal Masters, US Open).
Federer came out on top of Djokovic in three or more consecutive matches in 2006-07 (Monte-Carlo Masters, Davis Cup, Australian Open, Dubai Tennis Championships) and 2010 (Shanghai Masters, Swiss Indoors, ATP Finals), which contributed to him winning 23 of their 50 singles matches. Murray, meanwhile, had only one such patch against the 24-time Major winner, stringing together three back-to-back wins at the 2008 Toronto Masters, the 2008 Cincinnati Masters, and the 2009 Miami Masters.
Sinner, who is vying for the year-end world No. 1 position, had begun his head-to-head record against Djokovic by going 0-3. However, the Italian has since caught up with his older rival, winning their last five matches at the 2023 Davis Cup Finals, the 2024 Australian Open, the 2025 Shanghai Masters, the 2025 French Open and 2025 Wimbledon.
Roddick, on his part, is the only active or retired player to lead Djokovic in their head-to-head record. The American has a 5-4 edge over the world No. 5, thanks to his four-match winning streak in their rivalry at the 2009 Australian Open, the 2009 Indian Wells Masters, the 2009 Montreal Masters, and the 2010 Cincinnati Masters. Lastly, Tsonga started his rivalry against the Serb by winning four consecutive matches at the 2008 Bangkok Open, the 2008 Paris Masters, the 2008 ATP Finals, and the 2009 Open 13 Provence.
Novak Djokovic Looking to Sharpen Bid for Record-Extending Eighth ATP Finals Title
Novak Djokovic has compiled a respectable 35-11 win/loss record from 12 tournament appearances on the ATP Tour this year. The 24-time Major winner had a slow start to his season, enduring four first-round exits at the Qatar Open, the Indian Wells Masters, the Monte-Carlo Masters, and the Madrid Masters. However, he has since righted the ship by winning his 100th singles title at the Geneva Open and recording semifinal appearances at the French Open, Wimbledon, the US Open, and the Shanghai Masters.
The former world No. 1 has won the ATP Finals on seven occasions — 2008, 2012-15, 2022, and 2023 — and can extend his Open Era record of most singles titles at the ATP Finals with a potential eighth title victory at the year-end championships this month. In Turin, he will likely have to beat at least one of Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz — two players who have regularly bested him at the big tournaments in the last few years.