Novak Djokovic could win his 100th career title in the 2024 Shanghai Masters final, but Jannik Sinner proved too strong.
The Serbian legend currently sits in sixth place in the all-time title race and third among men. In titles won on the ATP Tour, only Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103) are ahead of Djokovic, who won 99 titles in his tennis career.
In the Shanghai Masters final, he could add his 100th, but standing on the opposite side of the net was the biggest obstacle he had to face at the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Shanghai, and probably also the biggest obstacle in tennis right now, the reigning World No. 1, Jannik Sinner.
Although a huge favorite, the young Italian didn't enter the final match in his peak form. He had already lost a set at the event, in the third round, to Tomas Martin Etcheverry.
On top of that, he was facing a four-time Shanghai Masters champion while he played in his first final at the event. The battle between the two was extremely close.
In the first set, both held their serve without too many issues, even though the 37-year-old player seemed to be a bit more comfortable on his serve than his opponent.
Since the fifth game in the opening set, Djokovic won 16 consecutive points on his serve, and that was a riddle that Sinner had to solve if he wanted to win the first-set tie-break.
He solved it very quickly, breaking his opponent's serve on the first two occasions. That gave him a swift 4-0 lead, but the 24-time Grand Slam champion was still able to complicate the tie-break by recovering one of the mini-breaks.
That wasn't enough to trouble the top seed, as he mini-broke again, and despite losing one of the mini-breaks again, Sinner still had an advantage of one mini-break and served out the tie-break to win it 7-4.
With a one-set advantage, the confirmed year-end World No. 1 player was the overwhelming favorite to win the match. He continued serving masterfully, and this time, he could also create break point opportunities on his opponent's serve.
Already in the fourth game of the second set, Djokovic faced two break points, and despite saving the first one, he couldn't save the second one, with Sinner leading already 3-1, and 4-1 after holding his serve.
The stands were packed, and even Roger Federer, who played an exhibition match at the event, and Carlos Alcaraz and his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero, watched how this match would conclude.
There wasn't much drama, as both continued dominating on their serves. That one lost service game proved to be crucial for Djokovic, as he wasn't able to recover that one-break deficit.
Sinner continued controlling the play to win the match 7-6(4), 6-3, winning the Shanghai Masters for the first time in his tennis career, adding his 7th title to his collection in 2024, and denying Djokovic his 100th career title.