Djokovic Eliminated Early; Zverev Is Okay, but There’s a Big Worry About His Ankle

Novak Djokovic was eliminated in his opening match at the Shanghai Masters 1000. The Serbian tennis player, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, was defeated by Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz, who won 6-4, 6-3 without much difficulty.

The Belgrade star, who appeared to be physically drained following his victory at the Beijing tournament, lost more and more of his rhythm as the match wore on and was unable to counter a Polish opponent in top form. Hurkacz secured the decisive break in the first set in the tenth game, while in the second set he broke the Serb’s serve in the fourth game, then closed out the match thanks to a virtually flawless serve.

There was a big scare, however, for the future No. 1 Alexander Zverev, who fell awkwardly to the ground during his match against China’s Wu and grabbed his ankle. The German player nevertheless prevailed over the home favorite 6-4, 7-6, earning a spot in the third round.

If he manages to achieve a strong result in Shanghai, Zverev could become the ATP No. 1 as early as Vienna in early November, after Jannik Sinner announced that he will not return to the court until early 2027. According to projections, the German player, who has won two Grand Slams this season, could claim the No. 1 ranking as early as November 2, or the following week at the latest: it will all depend on his results in Shanghai and then in Vienna