Spaniard David Ferrer won his first Masters 1000 title in Paris by beating Polish qualifier Jerzy Janowicz in the final. It was his seventh title of the year and he has won more matches than any other tennis player, including Federer and Djokovic, in 2012.
Ferrer beat Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the quarterfinals and Michael Llodra in the semi-finals. He eased past Janowicz 6-4, 6-3 in Sunday's final. It was Ferrers' fourth attempt to win a Masters 1000 title.
"I feel the pressure more than him, because I played three times in a Masters final." Ferrer said. "He's a young player. It was the first final for him, without pressure."
Ferrer converted his first match point when Janowicz's two-handed backhand went wide. Ferrer's seven tournament titles this season is one more than Federer, who decided not to defend his title in Paris, to prepare for the ATP World Tour Finals this week.
Djokovic and Andy Murray were defeated in the early rounds.
"I was very nervous because it was my chance to win a first Masters title, but somehow I knew it was my turn," Ferrer added. "To me this is a dream to win here. If I won it's because I have a great team (supporting me)."
The best thing about Federer is that he believes in continuous improvement of his skill and respects other players' achievements. "Maybe I won more titles than Federer, but Federer won the important titles. Federer or Djokovic or Andy Murray, not me," he said. "I will try to improve my game."
Janowicz also demonstrated a lot of pluck and ability. On his way to the final, he defeated high ranking players. It was his first final appearance of any tournament, bettering his previous best of reaching the quarterfinal in Moscow last month.
"I was actually exhausted, almost," Janowicz said. "During the last three nights I didn't sleep much. ... Also I didn't have an appetite, so I didn't eat too good.
"Today my serve and my strokes were not that accurate and not that fast. "At the beginning of the match my hand was really heavy, and (that) is a sign of tiredness already.
"But David played today really good tennis."
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