The victory made him the fourth to beat Djokovic on hard courts, Spain’s Rafael Nadal on clay and Switzerland’s Roger Federer on grass, after Britain’s Andy Murray, Austria’s Dominic Thiem and Germany’s Alexander Zverev. It also made him the 31st man to record wins over all three.
Flawless serve from Hurkac against a tired Djokovic
The conditions were close to ideal for the 2023 champion. Djokovic won the Beijing title on Tuesday, his 102nd round-robin title, and looked extremely tired against the brilliant Hurkac.
The Poles’ own week made the performance even more meritorious. He was injured in the semi-finals in Beijing five days earlier, and Friday’s victory was his second in Shanghai.
Hurkac held all 10 of his service games, serving 13 aces to Djokovic’s two and winning 82 percent of his first-serve points. He saved the only two break points he faced and converted two of his five, breaking once in each set. He finished with 32 wins to Djokovic’s 11, both committing 19 unforced errors.
Hurkac, who opened his campaign with a 6-3, 7-6 (4) win over Australia’s James Duckworth, extended his winning streak at the Rolex Shanghai Masters to eight matches. For four-time champion Djokovic, it was his earliest appearance at the event. He had reached at least the quarterfinals in each of his previous 11 appearances.
Djokovic’s road to Turin is trickier
The loss complicates Djokovic’s path to the Nitto ATP Finals. Ninth in the live race to Turin, he will likely need a few wins to qualify for the Rolex Paris Masters, with Australia’s Alex de Minaur, Spain’s Rafael Jodar and American Taylor Fritz close behind and the players below him playing strong this week in Shanghai.
Hurkac will next face China’s Yi Zhu or 24th seed Lorenzo Musetti of Italy, who meet later on Friday on Stadium Court.
