ABU DHABI — World No. 1 Novak Djokovic opened his season with an impressive 6-0, 6-3 win over David Ferrer in the Mubadala World Tennis Championship exhibition tournament Friday. The Serb, who won the title last year, raced away with the first set of the semifinal clash before the Spaniard managed to grab an early break in the second. Ferrer served to go 3-1 up, but could not convert and it was Djokovic who once again took over the reins of what was a low-key match. After the match, Djokovic told ESPN: “I love this court and the conditions here. I wish all the tournaments in the world were played here. “It's definitely a great surface. It's not too warm here, not too cold, it's ideal to prepare on. “I am surprised with my game considering it's the first match of the official season. Hopefully I can play another good one tomorrow.” In the final Djokovic will play Spaniard Nicolas Almagro — a late replacement for Rafael Nadal who postponed his return to action after a six-month injury layoff due to a stomach virus. Almagro defeated Serbia's Janko Tipsarevic 2-6, 7-6 (7-3), 6-2 in the other semifinal. “Please support me tomorrow because I am going to need it,” Almagro told the crowd. Tipsarevic had reached the semifinals by defeating US Open and Olympic champion Andy Murray Thursday. Djokovic, Venus at Hopman Cup Top-ranked men's player Novak Djokovic and seven-time Grand Slam singles champion Venus Williams will represent their countries at the Hopman Cup team tennis tournament, although they won't play each other unless Serbia and the United States advance to the final. Playing for the first time on blue hardcourts at the new Perth Arena, the eight-country event begins Saturday when Spain plays South Africa and Germany takes on Australia. Venus and her partner John Isner will see their first action Sunday when the US plays South Africa, and Spain also plays France on the same day. Serbia, represented by Djokovic and Ana Ivanovic, plays Italy in the only match Monday. Each match consists of women's and men's singles followed by mixed doubles. Top-seeded Serbia, Australia, Italy and Germany will play in Group A, while the No. 2 US, South Africa, Spain and France make up Group B, with the winners of each group to play in the final on Jan. 5. The tournament is one of six lead-up tournaments in Australia and New Zealand ahead of the Australian Open, which begins Jan. 14 in Melbourne. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, who will represent France with Mathilde Johansson, is working with a new coach, Australian Roger Rasheed, in an attempt to improve his play against the top-four players. Tsonga, who lost the Australian Open final in 2008 to Djokovic, has struggled against the top four this year. He has lost all five matches with Djokovic, both against Andy Murray and his one and only match against Rafael Nadal, while his lone match against Roger Federer was a walkover in Tsonga's favor. — Agencies
