Djokovic’s Shanghai Shock: Hurkacz Stuns Serbian Star as Birthday Boy Shelton, Zverev Advance

Novak Djokovic’s China campaign took a dramatic turn as the 24-time Grand Slam champion suffered a straight-sets defeat to Hubert Hurkacz at the Shanghai Masters on Friday, just days after celebrating his title triumph in Beijing. Meanwhile, birthday boy Ben Shelton and top seed Alexander Zverev progressed to the next round.

Djokovic lost 6-4, 6-3 to Hurkacz in an 87-minute second-round encounter, ending his Shanghai campaign shortly after securing his 102nd career title at the China Open.

Reflecting on the defeat, Djokovic admitted that Hurkacz’s powerful serve proved difficult to handle, with a single break in each set enough to decide the contest.

“Beijing was great and a very early exit here but it is OK,” Djokovic said, adding that he wanted to rest before preparing for the indoor season.

“It is very difficult to return his serve, almost impossible. So yeah, I did not adjust and it was a really tough draw for me, playing him in the first match,” he added.

Hurkacz, the 2023 Shanghai Masters champion, said defeating Djokovic was special, particularly after the Serbian’s recent success in Beijing. He also described sharing the court with the tennis legend as a pleasure.

Elsewhere, Shelton celebrated his 24th birthday with a 6-3, 7-6 (6) victory over Daniel Altmaier. The US Open runner-up advanced after representing the United States in the Davis Cup, where he lost both his singles matches.

Top seed Zverev defeated Chinese wild-card entrant Wu Yibing 6-4, 7-6 (4) to register his 30th hard-court victory of the year. The German had beaten Shelton in four sets in the US Open final.

Britain’s Arthur Fery lost a closely fought three-set contest 7-6 (6), 6-7 (5), 7-6 (2) to Karen Khachanov. Ninth seed Alex de Minaur advanced after Alex Molcan retired with an undisclosed ailment, while qualifier Rei Sakamoto defeated 23rd seed Andrey Rublev 6-4, 6-4.

World No. 1 Jannik Sinner has also withdrawn from Shanghai after announcing that a right knee injury would keep him out for the remainder of 2026. Djokovic said he intended to reach out to the Italian amid his injury struggles.