Djokovic, 26, extended his unbeaten run to 22 matches with victory in one hour and 37 minutes, capturing his seventh title of the year.

The win improves his career record of 42 wins to 21 loses in title matches and seven to two this year.

"It's the highest quality of tennis that you have next to Grand Slams, because every match that you play, you play against a top 10 player every second day," said Djokovic.

"Especially this year, with back to back Paris Bercy tournament and London, wasn't easy for sure.

"I am very proud of the way that I managed to recover and perform better and better as the tournament went on.

"I had the tough three setters against all of the opponents in my group, and then I managed to raise the level of tennis in the semi-finals and finals when it mattered the most."

Djokovic beat Nadal in the pairs Open Era record 39th meeting

Nadal had already ensured that he would end the year as the world number one after back to back wins in the round robin stage of the competition.

The Spaniard was looking to become only the third Spanish player to capture the all elusive ATP World Tour Finals title, after Manuel Orantes in 1975 and Alex Corretja in 1998, having failed to win the title on his previous five attempts.

The 27-year-old came into the tournament as the number one seed following a stunning comeback after a career threatening knee injury ruled him out of the sport for over seven months.

Since his return in February, Nadal has won 75 matches, losing only seven, winning 10 titles including the French Open, the US Open and five Masters 1000 events.

Following his defeat on Monday night he paid tribute to the crowd for the vibrant atmosphere they created in the O2.

"This is probably one of the best seasons of my career and playing this match in this stadium is just fantastic for me," said Nadal.

"Thanks to all the crowd for all the support, not only today but around the week and all the crowd that supported me.

"See you next year."

Nadal and Djokovic both went into the final on Monday sporting unbeaten four win streaks in the tournament.

Djokovic will now travel home to Serbia to compete against defending champions the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup final in Belgrade



The final marked their Open Era record 39th meeting, of which Nadal leads 22-17, and their sixth meeting of the season, which is now tied three a piece.

Djokovic won his 19th career match in the season finale and he moved into a tie for 7th place with John McEnroe.

Djokovic will next compete for Serbia against Czech Republic in the Davis Cup final, which is due to begin on Thursday (November 15).

"I think I've worked on a few things in my game and serve that has helped me win a lot of matches in last two months," he said.

"This is definitely the best possible way that I can finish the season, of course, the official ATP season, not including the Davis Cup final that I have in a few days' time, where, of course, I hope that we can bring another title to our country."

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November 2013: Nadal to end season as world number one