Novak Djokovic had to work much harder than expected to beat German ace Yannick Hanfmann and enter the round of 16 of the Shanghai Masters 1000. The Serbian legend – who seemed to be struggling physically even today due to the humidity – lost the first set to the current world number 150 and the second set was balanced, until the former world number 1 raised his level in the twelfth game. Yannick lowered his intensity slightly in the decisive set, allowing Nole to place the break and get a very valuable victory.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion cannot be fully satisfied with his performance, but he has shown once again that he knows how to make the difference in the moments that matter most and his experience has allowed him to manage the harsh conditions in the best way.
This tournament was initially not on the schedule of the 38-year-old from Belgrade, who decided to travel to China because he always receives so much support from fans and had added the final here in the last edition. Nole is convinced that he has a better chance of lifting the trophy in events like this, in which the matches are best of three sets.
Speaking on Eurosport as an analyst, former French star Nicolas Escudé gave his opinion on Novak’s performance today: “The match turned into a really tough battle. Djokovic had to fight against himself and against Hanfmann, who put in an excellent performance and was really consistent especially with his serve.
Nole was able to resist, tried not to get nervous in the most difficult moments and waited for the right opportunity. The Serbian veteran was impeccable with his serve in the third set, while the German began to make more unforced errors than at the beginning.
In particular, Yannick made some mistakes that he should have avoided in the last game of the match. In any case, it was a very interesting clash.” The former World No.1 will face Jaume Munar in the next round.
