Serbian world number one Novak Djokovic put the disappointment of his US Open disqualification firmly behind him as he won the Italian Open in Rome, giving him a record ATP Masters 1000 title haul.
Appearing in his 10th final on the clay in Rome, Djokovic battled past Argentine eighth seed Diego Schwartzman in straight sets, 7-5 6-3.
The title handed the Serb a record 36th Masters 1000 crown, edging him one ahead of fellow great Rafael Nadal on the all-time list, with Swiss legend Roger Federer further behind on 28 titles.
Number one seed Djokovic was forced to scrap hard against Schwartzman as the Argentine opened up a 3-0 lead in the first set, before Djokovic picked up four games in a row to get proceedings back on serve.
The Serb then broke decisively in game 12 to take a hard-fought set 7-5.
The start of the second set saw the pair exchange breaks before Djokovic wrestled control by breaking to love in game eight and then serving out the match to win a fifth title in Rome.
“It was a great week, a very challenging week,” Djokovic said on court after the win.
