Novak Djokovic suffered a surprise second-round loss to Hubert Hurkacz at the Shanghai Masters, just three days after winning the China Open in Beijing.
The 39-year-old Djokovic ended an 11-month wait to lift the 102nd title of his illustrious career after Alex de Minaur retired injured from the China Open final. Contesting his sixth match in the space of 10 days, Djokovic received a first-round bye in Shanghai as the tournament’s 10th seed, but he lost to Hurkacz for the first time in nine career meetings with the Pole.
The big-serving Hurkacz, the 2023 champion in Shanghai who is currently ranked 34th in the world, claimed a 6-4 6-3 victory in 87 minutes.
“It’s a special night. I’ve been playing Novak for like seven years. It’s been unsuccessful but [he has been] such a great champion for so many years,” Hurkacz said.
“He just won Beijing, so it’s a very difficult task to play against him, but also it is a pleasure for me to share a court with him, to play such a legend of the sport.”
Beijing Triumph Sets Up Race Push
The men’s record 24-time Grand Slam champion claimed a tour-level singles title for the 21st year in a row in Beijing, where he extended his winning streak to 34 matches. It was only his second final of the year, following his defeat by Carlos Alcaraz in the January Australian Open final.
Djokovic had beaten world number two Alexander Zverev along the way and led third seed Daniil Medvedev by a set and a break when the Russian was defaulted during the Beijing final. In Shanghai, however, a single break of serve in each set was enough for Hurkacz to end his run.
Victory in Beijing boosted Djokovic’s hopes of qualifying for the season-ending ATP Finals. He is currently ninth in the race to Turin, and he will need a strong showing at the Paris Masters in November to move into the top eight.
Fery Falls in Three Sets
Also in Shanghai, Great Britain’s Arthur Fery lost a tight three-set contest to former top-10 player Karen Khachanov. Fery, who enjoyed a fairytale run to the Wimbledon semi-finals this year, was beaten 7-6 (8-6) 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-2) after three-and-a-half hours.