Djokovic wakes up from sleep in Shanghai with a tough defeat

Novak Djokovic has experienced the face and the cross of sport in recent days in China. If last Tuesday he made history by proclaiming himself champion of the Beijing tournament, this Friday he had to wake up from sleep with a clear defeat in his debut at the Shanghai Masters 1000.

The Serbian, very unwise and lacking energy, He was defeated by the Polish Hubert Hurkacz (6-4, 6-3) in a match without much history that had its turning point in the ninth game, when the Serbian faltered with his serve and surrendered the first set.

The equality in the second round lasted even less. Hurkacz tipped the balance in the fourth game with a break that would end up being permanent because at all times he seemed intractable with his service.

A blow to the former world number 1, who He will take a few days of rest before his next event, the Six Kings Slam which will be held in Arabia between October 21 and 24, a step prior to the final stretch of the season, with the Paris Masters 1000 and the ATP Finals, a tournament for which they still have a chance to qualify, as major events.

Things went better for Alexander Zverev, who defeated Chinese Wu Yibing 6-4, 7-6(4)who participated as a guest, and which put him in more trouble than expected.

The first set went according to the expected script: Zverev showed why he is the big favorite and Wu, current number 113 in the world ranking, tried to resist, delighting his dedicated fans every time he managed to surprise the number one.

The second round seemed like a walk for the German, especially after breaking Wu’s first serve, but it ended up being very difficult for him: not only was he forced to go to the tiebreaker but he gave a scare when he lay down, with pain in his left ankle, after putting his foot down badly when stretching.

In the tie break, Wu was unable to maintain that positive momentum, making it impossible for him to force a third set.

Zverev and Wu had only met once, in Geneva in 2023, with victory for the German thanks to the Chinese’s retirement in the first set.

The current occupant of the world tennis throne, who is already guaranteed to finish the year as world number 1, will face in the next round the winner of the duel between the Frenchman Quentin Halys and the Belgian Alexander Blockx, which is played simultaneously on one of the outdoor courts of the Qizhong complex.