Novak Djokovic came back from a set down to beat Chinese wildcard Bu Yunchaokete 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-2 in the second round of the China Open in Beijing on Friday, keeping his perfect record at the ATP 500 event alive and moving into the quarter-finals.
The 39-year-old Serb, the sixth seed, needed two hours and 52 minutes to get past the world No. 104 in front of 15,000 fans under the floodlights. Bu, 24, pushed the former world No. 1 back and forth across the baseline for long stretches, and Djokovic was only points from defeat late in the second set.
Djokovic had to call a medical timeout for his torso after surrendering a break advantage in the second set, but he recovered to take the tie-break 7-2 and force a decider. He raised his level again in the third set, winning four games in a row and holding serve before sealing the win with a backhand winner.
The victory lifts Djokovic to 31-0 at the China Open, a perfect record at the tournament he is playing for the first time since 2015, when he lifted a record sixth title in the Chinese capital. In doing so, he matched Rafael Nadal's Open Era mark for the best start to a men's tournament: Nadal also won his first 31 matches at Roland Garros without a loss.
"I had to play very well. I had to serve well in the right moments," Djokovic said. "He was so solid. I struggled to really find holes in his game." He also told the crowd: "Amazing atmosphere tonight."
Djokovic will face either top seed Alexander Zverev or Chinese wildcard Shang Juncheng in the quarter-finals; Zverev meets Shang on Saturday. The Serbian leads the German 9-5 in ATP meetings and won their most recent clash at Roland Garros in 2025.
Elsewhere in Beijing on Friday, Aryna Sabalenka launched her title defence with 11 aces in a 6-1, 6-3 win over Renata Zarazua, while Daniil Medvedev sent qualifier Pablo Carreno Busta out 6-4, 6-2. French Open champion Mirra Andreeva and Wimbledon winner Linda Noskova also advanced to the third round.
Sources
- https://www.afp.com/en/djokovic-survives-china-open-scare-against-wildcard-world-no-104
- https://novakdjokovic.com/en/news/tennis/china-open-novak-comes-back-from-the-brink-to-keep-perfect-record/
