Novak Djokovic vanquishes exhaustion to push through to Shanghai quarter-finals
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Serbia's Novak Djokovic gesturing during his 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 win over Spain's Jaume Munar at the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament on Oct 7.
PHOTO: AFP
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WUHAN – Novak Djokovic banished exhaustion and played through an ankle injury scare to make it to the quarter-finals of the Shanghai Masters on Oct 7, beating Spain’s Jaume Munar 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.
The victory keeps Djokovic on track as the favourite to take a record-extending fifth title in the Chinese financial hub, with other top seeds already withdrawn or knocked out.
The 38-year-old almost looked like he might not be able to continue when the match went to a decider, but conjured up the energy to break his decade-younger opponent twice in the third set.
“Thank you, thank you everyone, I love you!” he shouted in Chinese to the adoring crowd before leaving the court almost immediately after play finished.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion had a good start, breaking in the fourth game, but shortly afterwards had to take a medical break when his left ankle slid out behind him as he rushed towards the net.
He grimaced in pain as he was attended to by an on-court physio, but managed to resume to hold the fifth game.
Djokovic received treatment briefly again during a break in play in the second set and looked increasingly fatigued, crouching over frequently in between rallies.
Serbian-flag-waving Chinese fans roared in support, but 41st-ranked Munar ultimately broke in the 12th game after an unforced error from his opponent.
An agonised Djokovic dropped to the floor and remained splayed out on court with his chest heaving, as his team rushed over.
But he picked himself up and in the third set had an incredible revival, breaking in the first and seventh games and sending the stadium into a frenzy.
The world No. 5, the highest-ranking player left in the competition, will next face Belgian Zizou Bergs, who beat Canadian Gabriel Diallo 3-6, 7-5, 7-6 (10-8).
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz withdrew from the tournament to rest, and second, third and fourth-ranked Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and Taylor Fritz have all been eliminated.
The event in Shanghai has been beset by injuries, as players have battled temperatures of over 30 deg C and humidity levels peaking at over 80 per cent.
Sinner was forced to retire on Oct 5 after being seized with extreme cramps.
Danish world No. 11 Holger Rune, is also through to the last eight after he took out France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 6-3.
Next up for him is either Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor or Valentin Vacherot of Monaco.
On the women’s tour, world No. 2 Iga Swiatek enjoyed a victorious debut at the Wuhan Open on a scorching Oct 7 that saw Emma Raducanu and Jelena Ostapenko both retire from their matches.
Swiatek, who had an opening-round bye, eased past the Czech Republic’s Marie Bouzkova 6-1, 6-1 to book a third-round clash with Belinda Bencic or Elise Mertens.
After her win, Swiatek called on organisers to take player safety into account when scheduling matches on the outside courts, where there is no roof that can be closed to control the temperature.
“I feel like it’s getting hotter in different places over the years,” she said.
“I’m just trying to use my experience, recover well between the points and just spend all my energy on having the best quality possible. But for sure it’s a challenge.”
Earlier, Raducanu had her blood pressure and other vitals checked before retiring with dizziness from her first-round match when down 6-1, 4-1 to American Ann Li. Next up for Li is Russian ninth seed Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Ostapenko, who was scheduled on a roofless outside court, also had her vitals checked and was feeling unwell before she retired, citing heat illness, while down 6-0, 2-1 to Sorana Cirstea.
Meanwhile, four-time Major champion Naomi Osaka claimed her first victory at the Wuhan Open with a hard-fought 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory over Canada’s Leylah Fernandez. Next up for the Japanese is Czech Linda Noskova.
Chinese wild card Zhang Shuai, ranked 142 in the world, stunned 14th-seeded Emma Navarro 6-2, 2-6, 6-3. It is Zhang’s second victory over the American in as many meetings, and the 36-year-old will take on Romania’s Cirstea in the next round. AFP
