The happy memories came flooding back as Novak Djokovic made his long-awaited return to the Rolex Shanghai Masters, where his four titles make him the tournament's most prolific champion.
"It feels great. I missed it," said the world No.4, who is making his first appearance at the tournament since 2019. "It's been a while, as you said, five years, coming back to, honestly, one of the happiest places I've had in my career, a place, a country where I had plenty of success on the tennis courts, Beijing and Shanghai, many titles won, great memories."
Those memories are boosted by the warm welcome that Djokovic receives in Shanghai, where his countless fans are dedicated in their support.
"They are probably the most unique, the most passionate fans and, you know, always so dedicated, daily waiting for you, giving you presents and really feeding you with a lot of love and energy," he told the media on Wednesday.
"So that's something that I was very excited to experience once again. Yeah, I'm just enjoying my time so far in China."
There is added motivation in Djokovic's 10th main-draw campaign at Asia's only ATP Masters 1000 tournament. Should he lift the trophy for a fifth time in 2024, it will be the 100th singles title of the 37-year-old's career. The only men ahead of him are Jimmy Connors with 109 singles titles and Roger Federer with 103.
"I just love playing here, love the conditions, love the support that I get, and I also have an extra motivation of trying to go for my 100th title," said Djokovic, who last competed in a Davis Cup tie for Serbia early last month.
"I'm trying to improve daily on my practice sessions. I play a lot of practice points, games, sets, and get to the desired level, because I haven't been playing too many tournaments lately, so I have some catching up to do with others.
"Hopefully I can use that freshness in a way, and also the past experiences and success I had on this court for good success this year in the tournament as well."
After arriving in Shanghai on Tuesday, Djokovic took to the court for a practice session with local favourite Zhang Zhizhen. It added to his appreciation for the growing depth in Chinese men's tennis.
"I think he broke the ice, I mean, he's the most successful male Chinese player. He's climbing the rankings, and he's helping also other players to believe that they can get to the high rankings," he said.
Djokovic notes the exciting rise of Chinese players including Shang (Jerry) Juncheng, Bu Yunchaokete and Wu Yibing, as well as top 10 WTA star Zheng Qinwen, is helped by their work ethic.
"It seems like the future is bright for Chinese tennis in both men and women, both women and men's sides. I like to see that," he said.
"I don't think that the dedication or putting in the effort was ever a problem. I think the Chinese mentality is such that, you know, they are, when they are dedicated to something, they're really dedicated to something … working hard is not an issue here."
That's also true of a passionate Djokovic. Sixteen years since he debuted in the Rolex Shanghai Masters inaugural 2009 edition, the Serbian's love for the sport is stronger than ever.
"My love for tennis will never fade away. I have a lot of emotions when I'm playing, and not particularly only in the tournament, but also practice sessions," he said.
"Sometimes it's not always going your way, but I think my relationship with tennis goes much deeper than a tournament or a year or success or failure, it's just, you know, a sport that I fell in love with when I was very young, and I still have the love for the sport."
