Novak Djokovic had a winning debut at the Shanghai Masters 1000, having defeated Croatian veteran Marin Cilic for the 20th time in 22 clashes on the professional tour. The former world No.1 did not put in a perfect performance yesterday also due to the extreme humidity, but he raised his level in the decisive moments and qualified for the third round in the penultimate Masters 1000 of the season.
The Serbian legend has always had a great feeling with this tournament and with the Chinese fans, considering that he lifted the trophy four times here and reached the final in the last edition as well. In addition to this event, the 38-year-old from Belgrade has only confirmed his presence in Athens before the end of 2025 (he has not yet decided whether or not to participate in the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin).
Djokovic had a good debut
Nole has played few tournaments again this year and his focus has been mainly on the Majors, where he has never managed to go beyond the semifinals. He only prevailed at the Geneva ATP 250 before Roland Garros, winning the 100th title of his endless career. Despite the difficulties he has to go through right now, Djokovic is not thinking about retiring and has reiterated his desire to continue playing at the highest level as long as he has the right motivation and his body supports him.
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In his press conference after the match against Cilic, Novak explained that his son Stefan would like to follow him to every tournament he participates in but it is not always possible.
"My son loves tennis and would always like to be by my side, in fact he wanted to come here to China too" revealed the Serbian. "He would like to travel to every corner of the world, but he has to go to school and it's not that simple. He loves tennis and sports in general. At the same time, children cannot live the lives of their parents, but they must build their own lives" - he concluded.
