Hubert Hurkacz becomes fourth man in historical past to obtain uncommon Big Three feat after beating Novak Djokovic in Shanghai

Novak Djokovic fell in the opening spherical of the Shanghai Masters after dropping to Hubert Hurkacz in straight units on Friday.

Fresh off his triumph at the China Open, where he turned the first participant ever to have won an ATP title every 12 months for 21 consecutive seasons, Djokovic entered the penultimate Masters 1000 occasion of the season understandably fatigued. That confirmed in his conflict with the Pole, who emerged victorious 6-4, 6-3.

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Djokovic’s second-round exit marked his worst-ever end at the Shanghai Masters, a event he has won 4 occasions in his profession.

Hubert Hurkacz becomes fourth to obtain uncommon feat in Shanghai

With his victory over Djokovic, Hurkacz has become the fourth participant in historical past to obtain a very uncommon feat. He joins Andy Murray, Alexander Zverev and Dominic Thiem in the unique membership of gamers to have overwhelmed Roger Federer on grass, Rafael Nadal on clay and Djokovic on onerous court.

Hurkacz, who retired from his China Open semifinal with Alex de Minaur just 4 days in the past, got his first and only win over Federer on the grass courts of Wimbledon. He beat the Swiss at the Championships in 2021, profitable in straight units to advance to the semifinals. The loss marked Federer’s last-ever match at Wimbledon.

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Three years later, Hurkacz managed to beat the King of Clay, Nadal, on his most well-liked floor at the Italian Open. At the 2024 version of the ATP Masters 1000 occasion, Nadal was handed a heavy defeat by Hurkacz, who won 6-1, 6-3 in their only ever assembly on the tour.

Now, Hurkacz has accomplished the set by beating Djokovic on arguably his best floor. His win also snapped an eight-match dropping streak in the head-to-head with Djokovic, which dates back to the 2019 season.

Novak Djokovic suffers blow in his bid to qualify for ATP Finals

Djokovic’s loss to Hurkacz dealt a huge blow to his probabilities of qualifying for the year-end ATP Finals in Turin. The 24-time main champion at the moment occupies the eighth and closing spot to make the cut-off for the occasion due to Jannik Sinner shutting down his season, but that could all change very shortly as the Shanghai Masters continues.

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With a tally of 2,840 reside factors to his identify, Djokovic does not have much of a cushion on De Minaur, who trails him in the race to the ATP Finals with 2,730. Rafael Jodar, Taylor Fritz, and Jakub Mensik are all also chasing Djokovic for that eighth spot.

Djokovic, a record-seven-time winner at the ATP Finals, will now need a prolonged run at the Paris Masters to have a likelihood of qualifying for the occasion. His last look at the ATP Finals came in 2023, when he won the event by beating Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals before overcoming Sinner in the closing.