Djokovic makes history in victorious China Open return

Eleven years later, Novak Djokovic picked up where he left off in Beijing. 

Djokovic returned to the China Open for the first time since 2015 on Wednesday, beating Nuno Borges 6-3, 7-6 (2) in the first round. The six-time China Open champion and 24-time Grand Slam winner, improved his record to 30-0 in Beijing, extending a remarkable run that began in 2009. 

The win is the Serb's first since advancing to the Wimbledon semifinals in July and with it, he became the oldest match winner in China Open history. 

Before Wednesday, Djokovic's last match at the China Open was in October 2015, when he beat Rafael Nadal in the final. 

Djokovic will face China's No. 1 Bu Yunchaokete in the second round. A surprise semifinalist in Beijing two years ago, Bu advanced with a 6-2, 5-7, 6-4 win over Juan Manuel Cerundolo. 

Bu is one of three Chinese men in the main draw. His compatriot Zhang Zhizhen was unable to join him in the second round, falling to French qualifier Arthur Gea 6-4, 6-3.  

Earlier in the day, US Open semifinalist Karen Khachanov continued his winning ways by defeating No. 2 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime for the second time in a month. Khachanov stunned the Canadian in the second round of the US Open four weeks ago, and did so again in Beijing, winning 6-3, 6-3 in the first match on Diamond Court.

The women's WTA 1000 event kicked off with the bottom half of the draw. China's Yuan Yue returned to the second round with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Oleksandra Oliynykova of Ukraine. The victory sets up a second-round showdown against No. 4 seed and reigning Roland Garros champion Mirra Andreeva. 

The Australian contingent put two women into the second round. No. 140 Maddison Inglis scored her first WTA 1000 victory with a notable 6-4, 6-4 upset of Turkiye's 58th-ranked Zeynep Sonmez. 20-year-old Taylah Preston followed her into the second round with a 6-2, 7-6(4) win over Germany's Tamara Korpatsch.

Indonesia's Janice Tjen advanced with a gritty comeback to defeat Ukraine's Anhelina Kalinina 2-6, 7-5, 6-4. She will take on No. 11 seed Diana Shnaider in the second round.