SHANGHAI (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic’s bid to add a 100th singles title to his trophy cabinet on Sunday was dashed after he was beaten 7-6(4) 6-3 by world number one Jannik Sinner in the Shanghai Masters final on Sunday.
The Serb had been hoping to become only the third man to win 100 singles titles on the tour in the professional era after Jimmy Connors (109) and rival Roger Federer (103).
There were no breakpoints in a tense opening set where both players dominated on serve. Djokovic, who owns 24-times Grand Slam titles among his haul, gave away just five points in six service games.
It took a tiebreak to separate the two and Sinner, who has won just under 70% of the tiebreakers he has played in the past year, took the first four points in a row before clinching the first set when a Djokovic return flew wide.
Djokovic’s serve lost some of its potency in the second set and two-times Grand Slam champion Sinner broke for a 3-1 lead after blasting a forehand winner down the line.
Two more service holds put Sinner within reach of victory and he crossed the finish line with an emphatic ace to wrap up the final in an hour and 37 minutes.
U.S. Open and Australian Open champion Sinner, who levelled his head-to-head record against Djokovic at 4-4, has won seven ATP titles this year and ensured the year-end number one ranking earlier this week.
The victory in Shanghai also ensured Sinner’s fourth ATP Masters 1000 title overall and his third this year, adding to his wins in Cincinnati and Miami.
(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Nashik, India, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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