Novak Djokovic is playing at the Shanghai Masters this week. The 32-year-old has won two Grand Slam titles this year. He defeated Rafael Nadal in the Australian Open final and Roger Federer at Wimbledon to claim his 16th Grand Slam title. A shoulder injury at the US Open had kept him out of action for some weeks. He returned this month for the Asian swing of the tour. He will be aiming to win his fifth title in Shanghai.
A lovely moment with kid mascot
Djokovic is the favorite to lift the title. In one of his matches, the world number one had a tough time convincing his kid mascot to walk him to the court. The girl was shy and walked back towards the tunnel when it was time for the players to walk out. Djokovic followed her back and tried to convince her to accompany him. The shy girl was not easy to convince. The Serbian reached into his bag pulled out a snack in an effort to bribe her. She, however, did not fall for it and Djokovic had to make his way to the court without her.
That was actually a very cute moment. Novak tried everything, even bribing the kid with a gift ah ah. Hope she’ll get to go ol court another time if she feels like it. https://t.co/hzmZz3m5y1
— Carole Bouchard đź’śđź’› (@carole_bouchard) October 10, 2019
Djokovic the favorite in Shanghai
The Serbian is through to the quarterfinals in Shanghai. He defeated John Isner 7-5 6-3 in the third round. The win was his 350th at Master 1000 tournaments. He will face Stefanos Tsitsipas in the next round.
Djokovic battling with Nadal for world No.1 rank
The Serbian will aim to win the title as he defends his number one ranking from Rafael Nadal. The Spaniard will not play at the tournament after withdrawing due to injury. He is also set to wed his longtime girlfriend Xisca Perello on 19th October. He could leapfrog Djokovic at the top of the rankings by the end of the year. The 19-time Grand Slam champion leads the Serbian in points earned on the ATP tour this year. He could play in Paris at the end of the month and has qualified for the ATP finals in London. In the meantime, Djokovic will aim to win the 1000 points on offer in Shanghai.
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No problems with his shoulder injury
Despite suffering a shoulder injury at the US Open, Djokovic has skipped a beat since returning to the court. He won the Japan Open in Tokyo last week. The world number one defeated John Millman in the final on Sunday. He looked good on the court as he marched to the title without dropping a set.
Djokovic in Shanghai, ranking, and results in 2019
Now the world no.1, Djokovic has a 48-8 win-loss record in 2019. Djokovic is competing in Shanghai where he ousted Denis Shapovalov 6-3 6-3 and John Isner 7-5 6-3.
The Serbian will compete against Tsitsipas in the quarter. The head to head is 1-1.
The last time that they played, Djokovic won 6-3 6-4 in the final in Madrid in 12th May 2019.
The Serbian clinched 4 titles in 2019 at the Australian Open, in Madrid, in Wimbledon and in Tokyo. Djokovic was the finalist in Rome.
Djokovic won 76 titles in his career: 44 on hard courts, 14 on clay courts, 12 on indoor courts and 6 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
