The last time Novak Djokovic went an entire calendar year without winning a single title was in 2005. That, of course, is 24 Grand Slam titles ago and 428 weeks as ATP No. 1. He had gone through all of 2026 without winning a title, though, but had a chance to change that in the final of the China Open against Alex de Minaur.
De Minaur is far from a dominant player, but he is the kind of player that hardly any player wants to face. The Australian has so much speed that he often extends points in a way others can't. He might not win many titles, but he is capable of making matches go long and tiring out opponents.
Could that happen against 39-year-old Djokovic, a player who has a long-established penchant for elite fitness, but one who has struggled physically over the last several months in matches? One might assume that if the Serb was going to get his first title of the year, he might need to do so in straight sets.
Alex de Minaur retires in the final of the China Open gifting Novak Djokovic the title
In the opening set, each player was able to hold serve, with Djokovic facing the only break point of the set. The Serb won 90 percent of his first serves while de Minaur had four aces. The Australian was the more aggressive player with 16 winners and 19 unforced errors, while the more efficient Djokovic had six and 10, respectively.
The tie-break expectedly went Djokovic's way. The Serb is one of the best at winning tiebreaks, and his 7-3 victory to close out the first set was one more example of that.
Shockingly, though, after de Minaur won the first game of the second set, he had had enough. He retired, handing Djokovic his 102nd ATP Tour title, just one behind Roger Federer for the second-most ever. Jimmy Connors has the most with 109.
The title also meant that Novak Djokovic would have won a title in each of the last 21 years, an astonishing feat. The hope is that Alex de Minaur is fine, of course, but Djokovic has a reason to celebrate after earning the 2026 China Open title, a tournament he has won all seven times he has played it.
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