Novak Djokovic won a record-extending seventh China Open title on Tuesday after Alex de Minaur retired with a left thigh injury, trailing 7-6(3), 0-1 in the Beijing final. The 39-year-old claimed his 102nd career title and stretched his unbeaten run at the tournament to 34 matches.
Beijing, China: The final never reached the stage where it could be decided on points. Djokovic took the first-set tie-break, De Minaur played one more game, and then the Australian walked to the net. The Serbian had his seventh trophy in a city that has belonged to him for more than a decade.
It was a flat ending to a week that had been anything but. Djokovic arrived in Beijing for the first time since 2015 after a difficult season, one that included a run to the Australian Open final but also early exits at the US Open and in Cincinnati. He left with a title he described as arriving at the best possible time, as proof that he can still play at the highest level.
A tie-break that tilted the match
The opening set stayed on serve and went to a tie-break, where Djokovic pulled clear to win it 7-3. It was in the aftermath that De Minaur’s afternoon unravelled. The fifth seed took a medical timeout after losing the set and returned with his left thigh heavily bandaged.
He won the first game of the second set, then was forced to stop. De Minaur retired at 0-1 in the second set, with Djokovic leading 7-6(3). The 27-year-old apologised to the crowd afterwards. “I don’t feel great… I want to say sorry to all the amazing fans,” he said. “I didn’t want to finish like this.”
A week of comebacks and early finishes
Djokovic’s route to the trophy was unusual. He had to come from a set down to beat top seed Alexander Zverev in the quarter-finals, a comeback that stretched his Beijing record to 32-0. In the semi-finals, Daniil Medvedev was defaulted after hitting a ball into the crowd with Djokovic leading 7-5, 5-3.
The final became the second match in a row to end before its natural conclusion. Over the three rounds, Djokovic beat Zverev, Medvedev and De Minaur, the last two without having to play a deciding set.
A record that keeps growing
The title took Djokovic to 34-0 in Beijing, a perfect record at the ATP 500 event that now spans seven championship runs. It also lifted his career total to 102 tour-level titles.
What the title means
For De Minaur, the focus turns to recovery. Reports described the problem as a left thigh injury, though one outlet referred to it as a groin issue, and the extent of the damage and his plans for upcoming events have not been confirmed. For Djokovic, the result gives him a confidence boost and a trophy at the end of a season of mixed results.
Score: Novak Djokovic (SRB, 6) bt Alex de Minaur (AUS, 5) 7-6(3), 0-1 ret. — China Open (ATP 500), Beijing, final
Title: Djokovic’s seventh China Open and 102nd career title
