• ATP World Tour Finals

Berdych topples Tipsarevic to keep London hopes alive

Tomas Berdych will face David Ferrer in his final round-robin match on Friday © Getty Images

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ESPN.co.uk will be providing live scores and analysis from the ATP World Tour Finals in London.

Tomas Berdych got his ATP World Tour Finals campaign back on track after seeing off a dogged Janko Tipsarevic in London.

The Czech shrugged off a sluggish start to battle back from a set down to beat Tipsarevic 2-6 6-3 7-6(6).

Tipsarevic, playing his first match at the O2 Arena after his call-up following Andy Murray's withdrawal from the competition, showed no signs of nerves as he grabbed the opening set in convincing fashion. But Berdych, who came within a point of beating Djokovic on Monday, bounced back to boost his chances of qualifying for the semi-finals.

After losing the opening set, Berdych levelled proceedings with a late break in the second, and with nothing between the pair in the third, it was the world No. 7 who triumphed after a nail-biting tiebreak.

Having started the year ranked at world No. 49, Tipsarevic has enjoyed a breakthrough season, reaching his first grand slam quarter-final at the US Open, securing his first two ATP Tour titles and breaking into the world's top 10 for the first time.

His achievements have been largely overshadowed by the exploits of fellow Serb Novak Djokovic, but Tipsarevic immediately endeared himself to the crowd in London by grabbing an early break from a sluggish Berdych.

After being comprehensively outplayed in the opening set, Berdych, who had lost four of his previous five matches against Tipsarevic, rallied to fight his way back into the match. He won fewer points, made more unforced errors and hit fewer winners than his opponent, but took his chances when they came.

At 5-3 in the third set tiebreak, Berdych had the chance to serve out the match, but inexplicably gifted his opponent match point with a netted return.

With Tipsarevic serving for the match, the Serb sent a volley wide before a double fault this time allowed his opponent the chance to serve for the contest. Tipsarevic then ended up face down on the court after slipping at the crucial moment - Berdych's forehand finding the open court to seal victory.

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