In the pursuit of a century of titles, tennis sensation Novak Djokovic cruised through his second match at the Shanghai Masters, defeating Flavio Cobolli 6-1, 6-2. The Serbian ace sealed the deal with his 19th winner, a cleverly placed forehand that left the Italian scrambling.
Djokovic’s dominance was on full display as he didn’t allow a single break point in the third round, a far cry from his previous match against Alex Michelsen, where he was pushed to two tiebreakers and had to save set points.
Next up for Djokovic is 61st-ranked Roman Safiullin, who pulled off a stunning upset against 13th-seeded American Frances Tiafoe. The Russian won 5-7, 7-5, 7-6 (5) in a thrilling match that set the stage for an intriguing clash with the Serbian great.
Meanwhile, Stefanos Tsitsipas set up a highly anticipated showdown with Daniil Medvedev after defeating Alexandre Muller 6-3, 7-5. The Greek player has had a rocky past with the Russian former U.S. Open champion, but claims to have put their differences aside.
“I have a lot of respect for him now,” Tsitsipas said. “We’ve had our share of heated moments on the court, but I think we’ve both moved on from that.”
Tsitsipas had to wait out a two-day rain delay to play his third-round match, but looked in top form until a brief blip in the second set. He quickly regained his composure to seal the win and set up a 14th meeting with Medvedev.
Other notable winners included Ben Shelton, who fired eight aces and 24 winners to defeat Roberto Carballes Baena 6-3, 6-4, and Taylor Fritz, who eased past Japan’s Yosuke Watanuki 6-3, 6-4. Grigor Dimitrov celebrated his 100th Masters event with a 7-6 (5), 6-3 win over Alexei Popyrin, while Gael Monfils upset 15th-ranked Ugo Humbert 7-6 (7), 2-6, 6-1 in an all-French matchup.
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