NOVAK Djokovic has been working recently with Spanish spiritual guru Pepe Imaz in order to achieve better mental balance. On the evidence of his ATP Tour finals opener against Dominic Thiem yesterday some emergency extra sessions are required.

Peace, love and understanding was in noticeably short supply as Djokovic lashed a ball in the direction of Boris Becker, Marian Vajda, Imaz and the other occupants of his coaching corner after the loss of a first-set tie-break to the young Austrian. He then found himself engaged in a spat with the media when the subject was brought up with the press conference afterwards. And all this despite recovering his on-court poise as he ran out a surprisingly straightforward 6-7 (10), 6-0, 6-2 victor.

Djokovic received a warning from umpire Carlos Bernardes for unsportsmanlike conduct for the incident but things could quite easily have been worse had he struck a member of the audience. The Serb is not without form in this area, having torn his shirt, smashed his racquet and verbally lashed out at the same umpire as yesterday, Carlos Bernardes during his semi-final defeat to Roberto Bautista Agut in Shanghai last month. He is, of course, far from the only man in tennis who has been known to lose their cool from time to time.

"You guys are unbelievable," the Serb said, when asked if one such outburst could eventually cost him a suspension. "Because you're always picking these kind of things. I keep doing these things? Why don't I get suspended then? I'm close? I'm still not suspended, so if I'm not close, I'm not close. It could have been, yes. It could have snowed in O2 arena, as well, but it didn't. I'm the only player that shows his frustration on the court? That's what you are saying? It is not an issue for me. It's not the first time I did it."

Djokovic has lost just once here in the last four years - a group stage defeat to Roger Federer - and is attempting to become the first man ever to win this tournament for five years running. While this eventually became just another statistic on the list, and his first step to reclaiming his No 1 ranking from Andy Murray, he required therapy of another sort when calling out the trainer with a 2-1 lead in the first set. While this was ostensibly because a cut had developed on his right thumb and wrist at one point, it seemed as though the battle between the sport's top two for the No 1 spot would be over before it began.

"It was just a nasty cut that I had when I didn't manage to return the first serve," said Djokovic. "I just kind of caught the surface, then I cut myself. I just wanted to stop the bleeding."

Thiem, the first Austrian man to grace the World Tour finals since Thomas Muster, was also causing him discomfort. The 23-year-old's single-handed backhand is a thing of beauty, but big-match nerves almost became his undoing in a first set tie-break where he double faulted three times before eventually capitalising on his seventh set point.

It was then that Djokovic vented his fury, then that this match started to turn. The Serb broke the Austrian's serve in the first game of the second set, and the Chelsea fan - playing in front of the watching Jose Mourinho - never recovered his poise. "I met him right after the match," said Thiem, a man who proves that there is in fact an 'i' in Thiem. "He congratulated me on doing a good season." Djokovic may have proved that he is the special one yesterday but not before a few Mourinho-style histrionics along the way.