He is a legend of our sport, he’s very tough to play against, so I am very happy – Jannik Sinner after beating Novak Djokovic in Shanghai Masters final

World No.1 Jannik Sinner was delighted after besting Novak Djokovic by 7-6(4), 6-3 in the Shanghai Masters final on Sunday. This was the seventh title of the season for the Italian as he continued his rich form.

It was a tough battle in the first set with Djokovic and Sinner holding each other’s serve. There were some long rallies as both players struck the ball with brute force from the baseline.

However, Sinner was able to get the mini-break on the first point of the tiebreaker and went on to win it by 7-4. In the second set, Sinner broke Djokovic’s serve in the fourth game, converting the first break point of the match.

“It was a very tough match, obviously, playing against Novak is one of the toughest challenges we have,” said Sinner, who levelled the pair’s Lexus ATP Head series at 4-4. “I’m very happy with how I handled the situation. He was serving great the first set, I couldn’t find a way to break him. I played a really good tie-break which gave me confidence to start off well in the second set.

“It’s tough to tell you a secret about [Djokovic] because he doesn’t have any weaknesses. You have to try and use the small chances that he gives you, but there are not many during the match. He is a legend of our sport, he’s very tough to play against, so I am very happy.”

“I’m very happy with my performance throughout this whole tournament, it’s obviously a very special one,” added Sinner.

Djokovic, on the other hand, was playing in China after five long years. The Serbian congratulated Sinner on his well-deserved victory.

“I’ve had lots of success at Chinese tournaments in the past and hadn’t played in China for five years, so I’ve missed it and I’m really glad that I came this year,” said Djokovic at the trophy ceremony. “I think I played some really good tennis, but congratulations to Jannik. He was just too good today. Too strong, too fast, well done. You’re having an incredible year. You deserve this.”