Novak Djokovic scooped his 89th career title with victory over Marin Cilic in Sunday's Tel Aviv Open final.

Playing his first singles event since winning Wimbledon in July, Djokovic landed a 6-3 6-4 victory, improving his career head-to-head winning record to 19-2 against former US Open champion Cilic.

He broke serve to lead 3-1 in the opening set, and then struck immediately in the second set to tighten his grip on the contest, completing the task with a service winner on his first championship point.

This indoor hard-court success goes down as a third title of the year for Djokovic, who won the Internazionali d'Italia on clay before triumphing on the Wimbledon grass. He is the first man to win a title on all three surfaces in 2022 at ATP Tour level.

Prevented from playing the North American hard-court stretch of the season, due to his refusal to accept a COVID-19 vaccination, Djokovic sat out the US Open.

He made his first post-Wimbledon appearance at the invitational Laver Cup team event in London last week, which doubled up as Roger Federer's retirement party.

At the age of 35, Djokovic hopes to be a presence on tour for a good while to come, and Sunday's straight-sets picking apart of Cilic was a fresh demonstration of his enduring prowess.

Marc-Andrea Husler beat world number 31 Holger Rune 6-4 7-6 (10-8) to become the Sofia Open champion and earn his first tour-level title.

Rune reached Sunday's decider with a semi-final triumph over top seed Jannik Sinner, who was bidding to win three straight titles in Sofia.

But it was Husler who took the first set, breaking his Danish opponent in the first game of the match before holding in all five of his service games to clinch the opener.

The second set was another tight affair, as both players continued to dominate on their serve. However, the match hit a crucial juncture with Rune leading the second set 6-5, as he spurned two set points to break Husler and level the final up.

Husler survived to take the second set to a tie-break, though Rune again had the opportunity to make it one set apiece as he failed to convert another two set points in the tie-break.

And Husler took advantage with two crucial breaks of Rune's serve to seal the victory and become the first Swiss player to win an ATP Tour title since Roger Federer in 2019.

"I am completely taken aback," Husler said in his on-court interview.

"I am lost for words. It was a great match. I played a great, great match for sure. I just tried to stay focused, stayed calm and I am just really happy I was able to make it."

Yoshihito Nishioka produced an impressive display to shock Denis Shapovalov in the Korea Open final and win his first ATP Tour title in four years.

The Japanese player earned a 6-4 7-6 (7-5) triumph in a competitive contest against fourth seed Shapovalov on Sunday that lasted just under two hours.

Victory gave Nishioka his first trophy since the Shenzhen Open in 2018 and capped a memorable week that also saw him defeat top seed Casper Ruud at the ATP 250 event in Seoul.

Nishioka took a big step towards the second title of his career by breaking Shapovalov at a crucial moment when he was 5-4 up in the opener, both players having earlier saved break points.

His Canadian opponent was in the ascendancy after claiming an early break in the second set but Nishioka fought back from 3-1 down to force a tie-break and then won four of the first five points in the breaker.

Despite Shapovalov reducing the deficit, he was consigned to defeat when he sent a forehand wide, Nishioka dropping to his knees in delight after converting his second match point.

Shapovalov, a Wimbledon semi-finalist last year, has now lost in four consecutive ATP final appearances and still has just one career title to his name.

Novak Djokovic is yet to drop a set at the Tel Aviv Open as he reached the final with a 6-1 7-6 (7-3) success over Roman Safiullin.

The Serb broke his Russian opponent twice as he cruised to the opening set, and though Safiullin took the 21-time grand slam champion to a tie-break in the second, Djokovic's class showed as he won the tie-break 7-3 to ensure his place in Sunday's decider.

It was far from plain sailing for Djokovic, who conceded the tension in the second set was hard to handle.

Djokovic said: "I think it was a very competitive match, especially in the second set.

"I must say I was quite emotional on the court today in the second set, there was a lot of tension, and that was also due to his aggressive style of tennis. Big serves, and when he has time, he's so solid from the forehand and backhand corner.

"I knew that I had to stay very strong, and that he was definitely going to raise his level in the second set, which happened. I was serving for the match and played a couple of loose points, but credit to him for fighting back. It was an enjoyable evening on the court for sure."

Marin Cilic secured his spot as Djokovic's final opponent with a comfortable straight sets triumph over Constant Lestienne.

The Croatian second seed served 14 aces as he eased to victory in under two hours, winning 11 out of his 12 first-serve points en route to a 7-5 6-3 win.

Holger Rune is into the Sofia Open final after Jannik Sinner was forced to retire through injury with the Dane leading 5-7 6-4 5-2.

Sinner won the opening set but lost the second, and with Rune just one game away from winning the match, the top seed chose to retire with ankle pain, putting an end to his hopes of winning three straight titles in Sofia.

Rune will face Marc-Andrea Huesler in the final, after the world number 95 upset fourth seed Lorenzo Musetti.

The first set went to a tie-break as neither could find a break of serve, though Musetti found two in the tie-break to help him to a 5-1 lead.

However, the Italian surrendered the next six points as Huesler pulled off an incredible comeback to take the first set.

The second set was another tight affair as both held serve after serve, but Huesler finally found a crucial break to prevail 7-6 (7-5) 7-5.

Yoshihito Nishioka followed up a claiming a series of scalps by avoiding a shock of his own as he defeated ATP Tour main-draw debutant Aleksandar Kovacevic to reach the Korea Open final.

Nishioka, who will return to the ATP's top 50, eliminated fifth seed Dan Evans in the first round and later top seed Casper Ruud in the quarter-finals.

Meanwhile, Kovacevic made his main-draw bow on Monday, beating seventh seed Miomir Kecmanovic, and continued a sensational run all the way to the last four.

The American threatened another upset on Saturday, but Nishioka held his nerve to advance 6-3 4-6 6-3 in Seoul.

And now the Japanese will revert to the role of underdog on Sunday, with fourth seed Denis Shapovalov his opponent in the championship match.

Nishioka has only one ATP Tour title to his name, and he will have his work cut out if he is to add to that against Shapovalov, who is yet to drop a set this week.

The Canadian continued that sequence with a 7-5 6-4 success against Jenson Brooksby in the first semi-final.

Novak Djokovic sealed his place in the final four at the Tel Aviv Open after beating one of his "best friends" Vasek Pospisil on Friday.

The Serbian was made to work hard by his Canadian opponent, particularly in the first set, but eventually won 7-6 (7-5) 6-3.

Djokovic was particularly impressive on his second serve, winning 70 per cent of them, only four per cent less than his first serve success rate, and he hit just eight unforced errors compared to Pospisil's 21.

"It was a great, positive win," Djokovic said afterwards. "Vasek is one of my best friends on the Tour. We have known each other for many years. It is never easy playing someone you respect so much and like so much, but we are both professionals and wanted to win the match and you can see that.

"I think the level of tennis was really high. Especially towards the end of the first set and the second set. Credit to him for fighting. It's great to see him back."

The number one seed will play Roman Safiullin in the semi-finals after the Russian beat Arthur Rinderknech 6-4 6-1.

Constant Lestienne came through a tight contest with Maxime Cressy, winning 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 7-6 (7-3), and will face number two seed Marin Cilic in the other semi after the Croatian was handed a bye following Liam Broady's withdrawal prior to their match.

At the Sofia Open, Jannik Sinner remains on course for a third successive title at the tournament, setting up a final-four encounter with Holger Rune after easing past Aleksandar Vukic 6-2 6-3, with Rune eventually dispatching Ilya Ivashka 6-2 5-7 6-4.

The other semi-final in Bulgaria will see Lorenzo Musetti take on Marc-Andrea Huesler after both won their respective quarter-finals against Jan-Lennard Struff and Kamil Majchrzak.

Casper Ruud stumbled to defeat against Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka as the French Open and US Open runner-up bowed out in the Korea Open quarter-finals.

World number two Ruud lost 6-2 3-6 6-2 in Seoul on Friday as the Norwegian found the going too tough in his first tournament in Asia for three years.

Ranked 56th before this week, Nishioka is one win away from vaulting back into the top 50, potentially going beyond his highest ranking of 48th if he reaches the final.

He said, quoted on the ATP website: "I feel great. My motivation is very high. I am playing very well, very smart."

Assessing top seed Ruud, Nishioka said: "I know he came from Europe and played at the Laver Cup, which is not easy matches. He wasn't settled on this court or this country yet, maybe. I was ready. I was focused on playing against him and I had a plan and it worked."

Nishioka had an outstanding run to the Washington final in August, before losing out to Nick Kyrgios in the title match. That was a major outlier in his season, which has consisted largely of early-round defeats.

His semi-final opponent will be American Aleksandar Kovacevic, a 24-year-old world number 222 who is enjoying the biggest week of his career. A 'lucky loser', handed his place in the draw when a spot opened up, Kovacevic has taken full advantage and beat compatriot Mackenzie McDonald 4-6 6-3 6-2 in their last-eight battle.

Canadian Denis Shapovalov, still seeking a first final appearance of the year, moved one step away by beating Moldova's Radu Albot 6-2 6-2, setting up a clash with American Jenson Brooksby, who was handed a bye due to Cameron Norrie pulling out with illness.

Casper Ruud saw off a fightback from Nicolas Jarry to book his spot in the quarter-finals of the Korea Open, as well as this year's ATP Finals.

The top seed was given a second set scare by the Chilean but wrestled back control to emerge as the victor in a 6-2 3-6 6-3 encounter.

The two-time grand slam finalist, having been runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open this year, will face Yoshihito Nishioka after he saw off Japanese compatriot Taro Daniel in a 6-2 6-4 win.

His victory also ensured his place at the ATP Tour's end-of-year finale in Turin, alongside Spanish duo Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz.

Cameron Norrie remains on course to set up a potential final in Korea with Ruud after brushing aside Kaichi Uchida with a comfortable 6-2 6-2 victory.

The Briton will face eighth seed Jenson Brooksby after he turned over home favourite Kwon Soon-woo in a 6-3 6-4 result in Seoul.

Brooksby's fellow Americans Mackenzie McDonald and Aleksandar Kovacevic also came through their last-16 encounters to set up a quarter-final clash against each other.

Denis Shapovalov claimed a spot in the quarter-finals of the Korea Open by seeing off the challenge of Spain's Jaume Munar on Wednesday.

The 2021 Wimbledon semi-finalist needed 109 minutes to claim a 7-5 6-4 win over Munar, assuming control by breaking in the seventh game of the opener before doing likewise early in the second set.

Canadian Shapovalov – who is seeded fourth for the event – had not featured since a dramatic loss to Andrey Rublev at the US Open earlier this month, but produced a consistent display in Seoul, not committing a single double fault during the match.

His reward for the victory is a last-eight tie with Radu Albot, who held his nerve in two tie-breaks to record a 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (7-3) win over Steve Johnson.

In Wednesday's other match, Japan's Taro Daniel beat Ecuador's Emilio Gomez in straight sets in the duo's round-of-32 tie. 

Top seed Casper Ruud begins his campaign against Nicolas Jarry on Thursday.

Yoshihito Nishioka knocked fifth seed Dan Evans out of the Korea Open with a straight-sets victory on Tuesday.

Nishioka moved into the second round in Seoul with a 6-2 7-6 (7-3) defeat of the Briton.

The world number 56 from Japan will face Taro Daniel or Emilio Gomez in round two after winning 70 per cent of points on his first serve and breaking Evans four times.

Jenson Brooksby was forced to go the distance, but delivered a final-set bagel as the eighth seed saw off Wu Tung-lin 7-6 (7-5) 3-6 6-0.

Qualifier Nicolas Jarry will take on top seed Casper Ruud after defeating Ryan Peniston 6-3 7-6 (10-8), while American duo Mackenzie McDonald and Steve Johnson also advanced.

Tseng Chun-hsin progressed with Chris O'Connell retired with an injury after losing the first set before Kwon Soon-woo beat Yunseong Chung in an all-South Korean contest.

Aleksandar Kovacevic marked his ATP Tour main-draw debut by knocking seventh seed Miomir Kecmanovic out of the Korea Open on Monday.

American Kovacevic was only playing in the first round as a lucky loser in Seoul after he was beaten in the final round of qualifying, but he grasped his chance by winning 6-4 6-4.

The 24-year-old served 14 aces and broke the world number 32 three times to set up a second-round meeting with Christopher O'Connell or Tseng Chun-hsin.

Radu Albot got the better of Hiroki Moriya in his first appearance in Seoul, while Jaume Munar progressed when Yosuke Watanuki retired early in their match due to an ankle injury.

Kaichi Uchida came out on top in the final match of the day, consigning Hong Seong-chan to a 6-4 6-2 defeat.

Lorenzo Sonego fended off the challenge of Alexander Bublik to win Sunday's Moselle Open final and earn a return to the top 50 in the world rankings.

In Metz, France, unseeded Italian Sonego swept to a 7-6 (7-3) 6-2 victory in the trophy match, collecting the third ATP title of his career.

He enjoyed a stellar week at the ATP 250 event, following up wins over Gilles Simon and Sebastian Korda with a semi-final victory against second seed Hubert Hurkacz, not dropping a set across his four matches.

Sonego, who reached a career-high ranking of 21st in February, had drifted to 65th in the months since, but the ATP said he would climb back into the top 50 as a result of his title run. The ATP's live rankings on Sunday showed him making a leap of 20 places to number 45.

Bublik, the seventh seed, had reached the final after Stan Wawrinka withdrew from their semi-final due to injury. He kept pace with Sonego on Sunday in a tight first set where serves dominated and neither man could force a break, with success for the Italian in the tie-break breaking the resistance of his Kazakh opponent.

The second set proved to be one-sided as Sonego added the title to his previous triumphs on tour, also extending his winning head-to-head record against Bublik to 4-0.

This indoor hardcourt success followed previous wins on grass in Antalya in 2019 and on clay in Cagliari last year.

Sonego said in an on-court interview: "This is a really emotional moment for me. I'm really happy because I played my best tennis this week. It's been a tough year and I want to enjoy this moment."

Stan Wawrinka abandoned his first ATP semi-final for over two years as the veteran Swiss bowed out of the Moselle Open on Saturday.

The 37-year-old was taking on Kazakhstan's Alexander Bublik and trailed 2-1 in the opening set when he decided he would be unable to complete the match.

Bublik had broken serve and led 40-30 in the fourth game when Wawrinka approached the net and told the umpire he had to stop.

Wawrinka has been battling a thigh injury that appeared to be the cause of his withdrawal, meaning the three-time grand slam champion, now ranked a lowly 284th, could not push on with his quest for a first ATP Tour title in five years. His most recent semi-final appearance, prior to this run in Metz, had come in Doha at the start of 2020.

Italy's Lorenzo Sonego awaits Bublik in Sunday's final after he sank the hopes of Polish second seed Hubert Hurkacz in the first semi-final.

Unseeded Sonego took the win 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 and will be chasing a third ATP title, after previous triumphs in Antalya in 2019 and Cagliari last year.

Bublik, the seventh seed this week, has just one previous singles title, earning that success in February of this year in Montpellier.

Stanislas Wawrinka edged closer to a first ATP Tour title in five years after edging Mikael Ymer in a thriller to reach the Moselle Open semi-finals.

On the same day fellow countryman Roger Federer would hang up his racquet at the Laver Cup, Wawrinka was forced to go all the way by his opponent in Metz, eventually winning 6-4 4-6 7-6 (7-5).

The three-time grand slam champion, whose injury struggles and form have seen him tumble to 284 in the world rankings, served up seven aces to Ymer's two, and made no double faults.

Victory moves him into the last four, where he will meet seventh seed Alexander Bublik after the Kazakh saw off Holger Rune in another three-set encounter with a 6-3 5-7 6-4 win.

Defending champion Hubert Hurkacz is also through to the semi-finals after making quick work of home favourite Arthur Rinderknech, winning 6-3 6-2.

The world number 10 will face Lorenzo Sonego next after the Italian also came through his quarter-final in straight sets against Sebastian Korda.

Daniil Medvedev succumbed to second-round defeat against Stan Wawrinka at the Moselle Open on Thursday, while Hubert Hurkacz coasted past Dominic Thiem.

World number four Medvedev fell to a 6-4 6-7 (7-9) 6-3 loss against three-time major winner Wawrinka, who will next meet Mikael Ymer after his straight-sets win over home favourite Gregoire Barrere.

Second seed Hurkacz did not experience such struggles against Thiem as the Pole cruised to a 6-3 6-4 as he served 12 aces in a dominant performance in Metz.

Hurkacz will face Arthur Rinderknech in the next round after the Frenchman battled to a 7-6 (13-11) 6-3 triumph over fifth seed Nikoloz Basilashvili.

Alexander Bublik, the seventh favourite in France, was also made to work for his progress to the quarter-finals, downing Emil Ruusuvuori 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 6-3.

Fourth seed Holger Rune awaits Bublik after Benjamin Bonzi retired due to injury when 6-4 4-1 down against the Dane.

Lorenzo Sonego coasted through his second-round clash to defeat Gilles Simon 7-6 (7-2) 6-4 to tee up a last-eight clash with Sebastian Korda.