Hurkacz stuns Djokovic in straight sets to end Shanghai Masters run
Hurkacz stuns Djokovic in straight sets to end Shanghai Masters run
Hubert Hurkacz beat Novak Djokovic for the first time on Friday, dumping the four-time champion out of the Djokovic Shanghai Masters with a 6-4, 6-3 second-round victory.
The Pole produced a serving masterclass, firing 13 aces and 28 winners in one hour and 27 minutes to end an 8-0 losing record against the 24-time Grand Slam champion. It was Djokovic’s first match of the tournament, and he was never allowed to settle.
Hurkacz, the 2023 Shanghai champion playing his first match at the event since lifting the title, conceded little on serve throughout and described the win as “a special night”.
Djokovic Shanghai Masters: a testing season continues
The defeat added to a difficult season for the 39-year-old Serb. Djokovic arrived in Shanghai as the 10th seed, fresh from a record seventh China Open crown and the 102nd title of his career in Beijing on Tuesday.
That Beijing triumph had come in strange circumstances. Alex de Minaur retired hurt in the final with Djokovic leading 7-6(7-3), 0-1, after Daniil Medvedev had been disqualified from their semi-final for hitting a spectator with a ball. Djokovic did not have to win a match point in either the semi-final or the final.
Earlier in the season, Djokovic suffered a shock first-round exit at the US Open, his earliest Grand Slam defeat since the 2006 Australian Open. His last Shanghai title came in 2018, and the wait for a fifth crown goes on.
Hurkacz finds his range
Hurkacz, ranked 34th and a former world number six, broke Djokovic’s serve with a clinical display of power tennis. The 29-year-old Pole kept the rallies short, protected his own delivery from start to finish, and closed out the straight-sets win without facing serious pressure at any stage.
The victory sends Hurkacz into the third round and marks his first win over Djokovic in nine career meetings. For a player returning to the scene of his biggest title, the timing could hardly have been better.
What next for Djokovic
Djokovic’s late-season plans now look uncertain. At 39, the Serb has managed his schedule carefully through the year, and the short gap between Beijing and Shanghai may have counted against him.
Hurkacz, meanwhile, has every reason to believe he can go deep. His booming serve makes him a threat on Shanghai’s fast hard courts, and he knows exactly what it takes to win this tournament.
What was the score between Hurkacz and Djokovic?
Hurkacz won 6-4, 6-3 in one hour and 27 minutes in the second round of the Shanghai Masters.
How many times had Hurkacz beaten Djokovic before?
Never. Djokovic had won all eight of their previous meetings before Friday’s match in Shanghai.
When did Djokovic last win the Shanghai Masters?
Djokovic is a four-time Shanghai champion but has not lifted the title since 2018. Hurkacz won the event in 2023.
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