Djokovic wins 102nd title in Beijing, eyes Federer's 103
Beijing ended with Alex de Minaur retiring, and Djokovic is now one title short of Federer's 103 and seven short of Connors' 109. Shanghai is next.
Alex de Minaur played just one more game of the second set. He won it, walked up to the net and stopped. That is how the ATP final in Beijing ended on Tuesday, October 6: the Australian retired at 7-6 (3), 0-1, and Novak Djokovic collected his 102nd career title and his seventh in the Chinese capital.
Both players asked for medical attention between the sets and returned to the court after a short break. De Minaur’s powerless serves showed the problem was not going away, though match reports do not say what the injury was. Djokovic took the first set in a tiebreak after an hour and seven minutes, and before that Beijing watched an even contest: neither player lost serve until 5-5. In the fifth game Djokovic saved a break point with a backhand passing shot down the line, and at 5-4 to the Serb, De Minaur answered with a service game without dropping a point.
It was Djokovic’s fourth win over De Minaur in their fifth meeting. He reached the final after Daniil Medvedev was disqualified.
What did Djokovic say after the final?
At the trophy ceremony, Djokovic spoke about how long he had waited for this tournament:
“I last played here 11 years ago. I always have the highest expectations of myself, and I imagine myself with the trophy. This is a place where I have never lost. I haven’t had records like that lately. There have been a lot of ups and downs, health and physical problems. Now I felt good on the court, and when that is the case I can beat the best, and I showed that this week. I want to thank my team for their patience, they mean a lot to me. This title means much more to me than just one trophy.”
Turning to his opponent, Djokovic added: “I didn’t mention Alex at the start, sorry about that. I hope you recover quickly, I wish you all the best.”
He also said he feels at home in Beijing: “I’ve played this tournament from the beginning, I kept coming back, I love this stadium. The people are passionate, they are part of this success, there is no doubt about that.”
On his run of 21 straight seasons with at least one title, he said: “I am very proud of this achievement. It came at the best possible moment, as a boost to my confidence and proof that I can still play at the highest level.”
How far is Djokovic from Federer and Connors?
With the Beijing title, Djokovic is one trophy behind Roger Federer, who has 103, while the record belongs to Jimmy Connors with 109. He needs seven more to match Connors.
The numbers behind the run:
- his first ATP title came in 2006 in Amersfoort, when he was 19
- he is 34-0 in Beijing, with titles in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2026
- he returns to eighth place in the ATP rankings
- he has 24 Grand Slam titles, a record 40 Masters 1000 trophies and seven season-ending Masters titles
- he has won 27 of 50 meetings with Federer
Federer won his 103rd and final trophy in Basel in 2019, at 38, in a season when he lifted four titles: Dubai, Miami, Halle and Basel. Djokovic has already played past the age at which the Swiss stopped, and the next stop is Shanghai, where he can draw level with Federer.
The dispute with Zverev in the quarterfinal
The road to the title was not free of tension. In the quarterfinal Djokovic beat Alexander Zverev 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, and the match is also remembered for a dispute over a serve. According to Sport Klub’s account, the LED advertising board in the stadium changed during Zverev’s first serve, which distracted the German. Zverev lost the point, only then complained to the umpire and asked for a replay. The official explained that a new rule protects him, one that lets players request a video check after the point ends.
In footage published by The Tennis Letter, Djokovic told the umpire: “This is definitely one of the silliest rule changes I’ve heard of in my life.”
Former player Greg Rusedski, a former world number four and 1997 US Open finalist, sided with Djokovic in a conversation with The Tennis Letter: “That’s not fair. You can’t play the whole point and then ask for it to be replayed.”
The dispute did not change the outcome. Djokovic’s unbeaten record in Beijing stayed intact, and he heads to Shanghai with a title that, in his own words, means more than a single trophy. On court he said that when he feels good, he can beat anyone. The next tournament where he chases Federer’s 103 titles is Shanghai.
