Novak Djokovic overcomes his “physical crisis” by taking a big step in the ATP finals with victory at the Shanghai Masters

Novak Djokovic fought back from a deficit to beat rising star Jakub Mensik in the quarterfinals of the 2024 Shanghai Masters.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion felt both players were in a “physical crisis” at some point during the match, while he also had high praise for his 19-year-old opponent.

Djokovic earned a hard-fought 6-7(4), 6-1, 6-4 win over world number 65 Mensik to reach the quarterfinals of the Masters 1000 tournament in Shanghai.

The great Serb lost an intense opening set in the tiebreak after serving for the set at 5-4 and watching a 3-0 tiebreak lead slip away.

The 37-year-old reacted strongly and took a 3-0 lead in the second set, earned another break and completed the build-up game convincingly.

Djokovic then earned the only break of the deciding set, taking a 3-2 lead before securing victory with a powerful serve.

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The 7 men with the most ATP Masters 1000 match wins: Rafael Nadal with 410, Novak Djokovic is closing in

The 5 oldest Masters 1000 tournament winners: Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal Top three

The world number 4’s triumph has seen him overtake Andrey Rublev and move into seventh place in the Live Race to Turin rankings, boosting his chances of qualifying for the ATP Finals. The top eight players in the race qualify for the season-ending championships.

Djokovic now has 3,660 points, putting him 80 points ahead of Rublev in eighth place and, crucially, 355 points ahead of Alex de Minaur in ninth place.

In an on-court interview with Tennis TV, Djokovic praised Mensik’s serve and his potential after the two met for the first time.

“We played until the last moment, until the last game. I was lucky to find really great serves in the last game, a few aces, that helps,” Djokovic said.

“I didn’t serve that well at the end of the first set when I was serving for the set at 5-4. He managed to turn things around, he played a good tiebreak. I played a pretty bad tiebreaker.

“I kind of stayed composed and started the second really well, and I felt like we both had a little bit of a physical crisis at the start of the second. I think we pushed each other a lot, lots of long rallies. Really a tough fight. Almost two and a half hours.

“Jakub is someone I have been following for the last three or four years since he played the final of the Junior Australian Open.

“Yes, we trained in my tennis center in Belgrade and also in Montenegro, a few training blocks together. I haven’t trained with him for a few years, maybe a year and a half.

“Today I could understand why he is one of the best servers we have in the game and he is only 19. I think the future is very bright for him. He knows that I am always there for him, no matter what he needs.

“I think we should train together more, you know, I think we like playing against each other. I think we raise the level when we face each other.

“Today was of course the first time it was official, but we played a lot of practice games and sets and it’s always a lot of fun. So I wish him all the best.”

Djokovic will face world number 7 Taylor Fritz in the semi-finals of the Shanghai Masters.

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