Tsonga lost to Djokovic in the final of January's Australian Open

France's Jo-Wilfried Tsonga claimed his maiden tour title with a 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 victory over Serbian Novak Djokovic in the Thailand Open final in Bangkok.

His victory denied Djokovic a fourth trophy of the season and the chance to move closer in the rankings to world number two Roger Federer.

It was only Tsonga's second tournament since returning from a three-month lay-off following knee surgery.

"I feel great, it's got to be one of the best moments of my life," he said.

Tsonga, seeded second behind Djokovic, recovered from a break down to win the first set in a tie-break.

And the Frenchman's combination of powerful serves and inch-perfect drop shots gave him the edge as he broke for a 5-4 lead in the second set.

I wanted this since I was young, it's a dream come true Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

And Tsonga insisted that his loss to Djokovic in January's Australian Open final had not provided extra motivation.

"I didn't even think about the revenge," he said.

"It's very special to win my first tournament. I wanted this since I was young. It's a dream come true.

"It came down to maybe a couple of points. The last game was very hard and I was just saying in my head 'Go On! Do It!' so it was incredible."

Djokovic, just 21 himself, paid tribute to the 23-year-old.

606: DEBATE Hopefully this win will shut those up who complained Tsonga had never won a tour title! asabovesobellow

"Jo wisely used his opportunities and deserved to win his first title. I played a bit too defensively today in the final. You have to use your opportunities and I didn't.

"It's unfortunate to lose in the final but I lost to a great player so I have no regrets."

Djokovic added: "I haven't won a tournament since Rome but I'm not that disappointed since I have played consistently at the major events.

"I will now work on my endurance and strength and am aiming for good results during the indoor season."

Meanwhile, in the women's Korea Open in Seoul, top seed Maria Kirilenko recovered from losing the first set to beat Australia's Samantha Stosur 2-6 6-1 6-4 in the final.

The Russian managed to take advantage of several unforced errors from Stosur in the second set, before racing to a 4-0 lead in the third to claim her third WTA title of the year

"I feel good, but I fel tired. It was unbelievable how many mistakes I did," Kirilenko said.

"She started to play very good and she served so good, and for me it was difficult to return her serve."

Kirilenko lost to Venus Williams in last year's Seoul final, and had been knocked out of her last three tournaments in the first round.