31-0! Djokovic stays perfect at China Open with three-set win

Novak Djokovic has made winning in Beijing look easy for years. Friday was anything but.

Djokovic survived a nearly three-hour battle with China’s Bu Yunchaokete, winning 4-6, 7-6 (2), 6-2 in the Round of 16 to keep his perfect China Open record intact. The six-time champion improved to 31-0 in Beijing.

“They stayed almost until midnight, almost three hours,” Djokovic said of the fans on the court following the match. “I want to thank them for giving support to both my opponent and myself. … Unbelievable support.”

Djokovic, the 24-time Grand Slam champion, is making his first China Open tournament appearance since 2015.

Throughout the late-night Diamond Court thriller, the crowd favored Djokovic, despite the fact that Bu was playing on home soil. Cheers of “Let’s go Novak” filled the stands in between points.  

“After 11 years, obviously I want to keep the streak going,” he said on court after the win. “I really tried to give my all on the court for you guys, and, hopefully, you can see that and appreciate that.”

Bu, the world No. 104, proved to be too strong for Djokovic in the first set, with the 24-year-old breaking Djokovic at 3-3 to gain the upper hand in the set. The 39-year-old ultimately dropped the set, ending his 13-year streak of 30 consecutive sets won at the China Open. 

Djokovic started off the second set strong, holding his first two service games at love and breaking Bu to establish a 3-1 lead. Yet Bu remained unfazed and immediately broke back. The two remained consistent on their serves, and the set eventually went to a tiebreaker. 

Djokovic showcased pure dominance to take five points in a row to win the tiebreaker 7-2 and force a third set as the crowd roared with delight.

At the start of the third set, Djokovic broke Bu’s service immediately and jumped ahead 4-0 to take control in the final set. In a clutch display on return, Djokovic converted 6 of 8 break point chances in the match. 

In the final game, Djokovic recorded his 14th ace and finished off the victory with a winner on match point.

Djokovic will next play the winner of top-seed Alexander Zverev and Shang Jungcheng. Djokovic leads the head-to-head with Zverev 9-5 but has never faced the Chinese up-and-comer. Zverev has two Grand Slam titles this year. 

By Maya Sabapathy