Novak Djokovic rolled back the years to defeat French Open and US Open champion Alexander Zverev 4-6 6-4 6-4 to reach the semi-finals of the China Open on Sunday. The 39-year-old Serbian created a new piece of tennis history with the best start in men's singles at a tour-level event in the Open Era as he moved to 32-0 in Beijing.
With his victory, Djokovic moved past Rafael Nadal for the best start at a single event, with Nadal having won his first 31 matches at the French Open. Djokovic is a record six-time champion in Beijing and had won all 29 of his previous matches at the tournament before returning this year for the first time since 2015.
Meeting for the first time in nearly 16 months, Djokovic struggled to contain the German's power in the early stages as Zverev claimed the opening set, but the Serb gradually worked his way into the match. The turning point came late in the second set when Djokovic broke at 5-4 to level the match, shifting the momentum in his favour.
Djokovic's next assignment will be a meeting with Daniil Medvedev, who earlier overcame Francisco Cerundolo 7-6 (7-4) 6-3. He is just the third man in ATP history (since 1973) to earn a top-three win after turning 39 years of age, after Ken Rosewall and Jimmy Connors.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing