| October 11, 2024 | by Vivienne Christie |
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Not so fast, young man. While perhaps not the exact words Novak Djokovic would choose to speak to the rapidly improving Jakub Mensik, the prolific champion clearly expressed that message through his tennis.
With a 6-7(4) 6-1 6-4 victory over the 19-year-old Czech in their Rolex Shanghai Masters quarterfinal on Friday, Djokovic underlined his enduring ability to challenge at age 37.
From 10 main-draw campaigns in Shanghai, the Serbian is now a nine-time semifinalist. He's also within reach of lifting a record-extending fifth Rolex Shanghai Masters trophy and seizing the milestone 100th title of his career.
"It means more because I don't get many opportunities. I mean, I have a selective schedule and I haven't played at my highest level throughout this year, except maybe (a) few occasions, Wimbledon, Olympics, and so forth," said Djokovic of the meaning of achieving such milestones at this stage of his career.
"But China has been always a happy place, a place where I really played my best tennis throughout my career."
Djokovic required his best tennis to manage the threat of Mensik, who had added two top 10 wins - against Andrey Rublev and Grigor Dimitrov - to his rapidly improving record in his Rolex Shanghai Masters debut.
Facing a childhood idol in Djokovic, Mensik showcased his big serve and astonishing composure as he recovered from a lapsed service break in the first set to force a tiebreak against Djokovic. There, the big-hitting Czech recovered from a 0-3 deficit to grab the early lead.
From there, however, Djokovic began to dominate. He won three straight games to start the second set, gaining a double break of serve that ultimately ensured a deciding set.
While Mensik continued to push the Serbian, it was never quite enough as Djokovic gained sight of another victory in a favourite city. Helped by a pair of aces, he held serve to love to secure a record-extending 38th match win at the tournament.
"These kind of matches, against teenagers, it's something that really motivates me," Djokovic smiled. "(It) keeps me going, and pushes me to really dig deep, and to show to the world that I've still got it, you know, in my legs, can still go the distance with the young guys.
"I'm super glad that I managed to win this very challenging match."
Taylor Fritz, meanwhile, is warming up to his best tennis. Following wins this fortnight over Terence Atmane, Yosuke Watanuki and Casper Ruud, the American was in full control against David Goffin in the earlier quarterfinal.
He completed a 6-3 6-4 victory in one hour and 22 minutes to progress to a first Shanghai semifinal.
"I was just really locked in (from) start to finish, played a great match," said Fritz. "Played aggressive, took my chances. It's an easy match to maybe tighten up and play a bit safer, but I did a great job of kind of just staying aggressive and taking my chances."
Much like his broader campaign this year in Shanghai, the seventh-seeded Fritz could be pleased with his improvements throughout the course of the match.
After taking an early service break for a 3-0 advantage, Fritz dropped serve in the fifth game - but it proved the only glitch of his successful afternoon.
He recovered immediately to take the opening set and quickly extended his dominance with an early break in the second. He calmly staved off the hint of trouble when Goffin held two break points in the sixth game.
Fritz's trademark serve proved his biggest weapon, with 10 aces featuring among his 23 total winners. There was almost impressive accuracy, with not a single double fault recorded.
"I think in general this year, this whole year, I have felt like I've been in a better rhythm with my serve," said Fritz. "There's been times where it hasn't felt maybe as good as I would like it to, but yeah, especially in the last match and then this match, even more so in the second set of this match, yeah, I feel like I'm serving a good percentage and hitting spots very well."
With a fifth ATP Masters 1000th semifinal secured, the 26-year-old is relishing his late-season momentum.
"We're coming up on the home stretch, and when I kind of get deeper into a tournament, past the first couple rounds, then it gets a lot easier for me to really lock in and give it absolutely everything I have," he said.
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