Djokovic ‘shakes rust off’ to make third round of Shanghai Masters

Novak Djokovic said it took time to “get the rust off” as he fought through two tiebreaks to make his way into the third round of the Shanghai Masters on Saturday.
The Serbian beat American Alex Michelsen in a thrilling two-set match that finished 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (11/9). Meanwhile Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz showed why they were top in the world as they raced through to the next stage with confident straight-set wins.
Sinner dispatched Japan’s Taro Daniel 6-1, 6-4, while Alcaraz made short work of China’s Shang Juncheng, winning 6-2, 6-2. Four-time Shanghai champion Djokovic did not have it quite so easy against 43rd ranked Michelsen.
Michelsen started the first set strongly, breaking Djokovic early and going 1-4 up – to the displeasure of the crowd, fully behind the 37-year-old former world number one. To their delight, the Serbian levelled, and then hit his stride in the tiebreak, winning it 7-3. The reverse happened in the second set when it was 20-year-old Michelsen’s turn to catch up to take it to the tiebreak.
There were no surprises either for the tournament’s second seed Alexander Zverev, who won 6-4, 6-2 against Italy’s Mattia Bellucci. The tournament lost its second top-ten player on Saturday, as Andrey Rublev fell to 19-year-old Czech Jakub Mensik 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 6-3.
Gauff sets up Beijing final against MuchovaCoco Gauff fought back from a set down to reach the WTA China Open final on Saturday and set up a showdown with party-pooper Karolina Muchova.
The American former US Open champion beat Spain’s Paula Badosa 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 to close on an eighth title. The 20-year-old faces Muchova after the 49th-ranked Czech silenced a capacity Beijing crowd to beat bloodied Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in straight sets.
Sixth-ranked Gauff has struggled for form in recent months and split with coach Brad Gilbert after her US Open defence ended in the last 16 in a blur of double-faults. Gauff struggled again with her serve against Badosa, racking up 11 double-faults. But she belatedly found a semblance of top form to down the former world number two in two hours, 20 minutes. Gauff’s only title of the year so far came in Auckland in January.
In the other semi-final, Muchova disappointed the 15,000 crowd to beat a subdued Zheng 6-3, 6-4. The Czech is the lowest-ranked player to reach the Beijing final since the tournament began in 2004. She toppled top seed Aryna Sabalenka in the quarter-finals.