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Sinner retires due to cramp from Griekspoor clash in Shanghai

  • Posted: Oct 05, 2025

Jannik Sinner’s title defence at the Rolex Shanghai Masters came to an end in cruel circumstances on Sunday evening, when the Italian was forced to retire during the deciding set of his third-round clash with Tallon Griekspoor.

Griekspoor led Sinner 6-7(3), 7-5, 3-2 when the No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings was forced to stop in brutally humid conditions in Shanghai. The Italian appeared to be struggling with cramp in his right thigh.

Sinner’s physical struggles appeared to begin late in the second set, and he rushed to place ice towels around his neck at the changeover before the start of the third. In the decider, the Italian was limping between points and frequently massaged his right thigh. At the 2-1 changeover, he didn’t sit and instead put his legs up on his bench to try and ward off cramp.

“This is definitely not the way you want to win,” said Griekspoor. “Brutal conditions here in Shanghai all week already. I thought we were a little bit lucky to play in the evening without sun, but two hours and 36 minutes on the clock, middle of the third set… I’m sorry for him, I wish him a speedy recovery.”

Sinner’s physical struggles were exacerbated by the gruelling nature of his clash with Griekspoor. The Dutchman had appeared on the brink of defeat when he slipped to 3-4, 0/40 on serve in the second set, but he rallied to clinch the second set and force a decider.

“The first set was high quality from both, very dominant in the service games,” said the No. 31 in the PIF ATP Rankings Griekspoor. “I thought he played an unbelievable tie-break: He hit a couple of lines, served really well. I got a bit lucky at 3-4 in the second, where I saved 0/40 and served my way out of it. Sometimes you need a little bit of luck to win these matches.”

The first Dutchman to reach the fourth round in Shanghai tournament history, Griekspoor will take on Valentin Vacherot next in China, after the qualifier also advanced via a retirement. Vacherot led Tomas Machac 6-0, 3-1 when the 20th seed was forced to stop.

Sinner’s third-round exit in Shanghai is a major blow for the Italian’s bid to haul in Carlos Alcaraz in the battle for ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by PIF honours. The Italian trails his rival by 2,540 points in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, which acts as a barometer for the Year-End No. 1 battle.

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Djokovic stomachs the pressure, holds off Hanfmann in Shanghai

  • Posted: Oct 05, 2025

Novak Djokovic survived a night of danger and discomfort on Sunday evening at the Rolex Shanghai Masters, battling through illness and inspired opposition to outlast German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann 4-6, 7-5, 6-3.

The record four-time champion was outplayed for much of his third-round clash with Hanfmann, but he dug deep late on, drawing energy from the crowd to keep his title pursuit alive. With his two-hour, 45-minute victory — his second-longest best-of-three-set match in 2025 — Djokovic set a fourth-round meeting with Spain’s Jaume Munar.

“It’s the same for every player out on the court, but it’s brutal,” Djokovic said of the Shanghai conditions. “It’s brutal when you have over 80 per cent of humidity day after day, particularly for the guys when they’re playing during the day with heat, with sun, it’s even more brutal.

“For me, biologically it’s a bit more challenging to deal with it. But I had to really weather the storm today. Yannick played an incredible match from the beginning.”

After falling victim to Hanfmann’s variety and booming serve in the first set — where the German fired four consecutive aces — Djokovic faced additional challenges in the second set. The 38-year-old appeared to vomit during a changeover and began shortening the points in an effort to regain control.

Hanfmann, the No. 150 player in the PIF ATP Rankings, was aiming to become the lowest-ranked player to defeat Djokovic at ATP Masters 1000 level. Despite his aggressive shotmaking, which resulted in 33 winners including 13 aces, he couldn’t hold off Djokovic once he found his rhythm.

Djokovic’s set-point clincher to level the match ignited the Shanghai crowd and marked a decisive turning point. The fourth seed secured an early break in the decider and powered through to victory, improving to 2-0 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with Hanfmann.

“It’s incredible to be here playing in front of a very passionate crowd. First couple matches, packed stadium, one of the nicest and biggest stadiums we have in sports,” said Djokovic, who is 33-10 record in 2025, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. “So it’s stunning, honestly, I cannot ask for more. I’m grinding for almost three hours, third round of a Masters at 38 with the full stadium cheering my name. It’s a dream come true for me so I’m very thankful.”

Watch Djokovic’s set-point clincher:

The turning point in the first set came with a heavy dose of luck. Facing a third break point in the third game, Djokovic could only watch as Hanfmann’s mishit forehand floated over his head, prompting nothing more than a wry smile. Yet once he weathered an evenly contested second set, Djokovic asserted his dominance to reach the round of 16 in Shanghai for the 11th time in as many appearances.

He will take a 1-0 Lexus ATP Head2Head lead into Tuesday’s clash with Munar, who earlier accelerated past Yoshihito Nishioka 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 to reach this stage of a hard-court ATP Masters 1000 event for the first time.

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Chang takes trip down memory lane in Shanghai

  • Posted: Oct 05, 2025

Former No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings Michael Chang has seen the growth of professional tennis in Shanghai going back more than 25 years.

The International Tennis Hall of Fame member won his second-to-last tour-level title in Shanghai on 11 October, 1998, when he defeated Goran Ivanisevic in three sets. It was also the last of Chang’s 12 ATP Tour titles in Asia. Overall he won 34 tour-level titles, including a streak of at least one for 11 consecutive years.

The first ATP Tour tournament in Shanghai was held in 1996 and two years later, the Shanghai Ba-shi ownership group bought the event. Current tournament director Michael Luevano and managing director Charles Humphrey Smith have been instrumental in the leadership and the growth of tennis in Shanghai from the beginning.

At the 2025 Rolex Shanghai Masters, Luevano took Chang on a tour of the on-site ‘Heritage & Flag’ exhibition of Shanghai tennis, located outside Grandstand 2. The exhibition chronicles tennis in Shanghai, which started from scratch. Men’s tennis has grown from an ATP 250 tournament to the year-end Nitto ATP Finals in 2002 and 2005-2008 to a current spot since 2009 on the ATP Tour calendar as one of the nine ATP Masters 1000 tournaments. This is the third year that the event is a 12-day, 96-player field, making it the biggest men’s tournament in Asia.

“For me, it’s always special to come back to China,” said Chang, who is back in Shanghai in his coaching role with rising American teenager Learner Tien. “But for me I think coming, obviously to Beijing, but here in Shanghai, to know that you were kind of here when it started.”

<img alt=”Michael Chang” style=”width: 100%;” src=”/-/media/images/news/2025/10/05/10/44/chang-shanghai-2025-exhibition-shot.jpg” />

Photo Credit: Rolex Shanghai Masters

Luevano, who is celebrating his 30th year as a tournament director, reflects on the impact Chang made in the growth of tennis in Shanghai. “Because we had to build, as Michael said, you had to start from scratch,” said Luevano. “Michael was already a huge star, and two and three in the world at that time. That’s how we built partnerships, that’s how we started to build and educate the Chinese fans and players, inspire players.”

Luevano added, “He’s responsible for a whole generation of Chinese children playing tennis, not this particular generation, although you’re a role model, but the generation before. When I see Mike, I’m emotional, because it’s part of my history too.”

It All Adds Up

The themed exhibition chronicles the start of Shanghai tennis which begins with Chang’s title. The Shanghai ATP 250 ran for six editions from 1998-2004, skipping in 2002 when the Tennis Masters Cup was staged at the Shanghai International Expo Center. With the success of the first year-end Nitto ATP Finals (then Tennis Masters Cup) in China, then-ATP CEO Mark Miles said during the awards ceremony that there was a future for the season finale to be staged again in Shanghai.

“The fuse was lit when Mark Miles, in the award ceremony of the 2002 Tennis Masters Cup that was in Pudong, in a very large exhibition hall, was so impressed and during his award speech said that certainly he can see in the future Shanghai having a Masters 1000 event, as well as staging the Tennis Masters Cup again,” said Luevano. “I think that one statement became the catalyst for the investment that you see, and the government support and vision, which certainly the Chinese are known for, to create the tennis culture, the tennis hardware that we enjoy now.

“For example Qizhong Stadium is certainly an architectural wonder, for one, at least back in 2005 it was. It still remains a one-of-a-kind showpiece for the city.”

The exhibition features photos of Chang, Andre Agassi with former Chinese basketball star Yao Ming, along with past Tennis Masters Cup champions such as Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, who also owns a record four Rolex Shanghai Masters titles. There are also videos and memorabilia of past champions over the years.

Shanghai Exhibition

Photo Credit: ATP Tour

Last year the tournament was recognised as Standards of Excellence – the highest-scoring ATP Masters 1000 tournament under ATP’s new Player Choice Awards system – where players evaluate tournaments with 25+ standards.

“I had some conversations with different players about what it was like to play here in the very beginning,” said Chang. “I came over on the flight (from Beijing), obviously with Learner, but also with Jannik Sinner. And he was like, ‘What was it like playing the first events here’? So I’m telling him what it was like, and how far it’s come, and how spoiled they are now.

“It’s true. I mean, it’s incredible. I don’t know, honestly, if people actually realise what is available for the players now. I mean, if you go and you just take a look at the gym and the way these guys are preparing it for the players, the food and the drink, everything is first class.

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Mpetshi Perricard secures double milestone with Fritz revenge job in Shanghai

  • Posted: Oct 05, 2025

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard secured a pair of significant breakthroughs in one swoop on Sunday at the Rolex Shanghai Masters.

The Frenchman upset World No. 4 Taylor Fritz 6-4, 7-5 to seal the biggest win of his career by PIF ATP Ranking. With his one-hour, 25-minute victory inside the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena, one which avenged his painful loss to Fritz from two sets up at Wimbledon earlier this year, Mpetshi Perricard also booked his spot in the fourth round at an ATP Masters 1000 for the first time.

Although Perricard secured his win in straight sets, humid conditions in Shanghai made Sunday’s encounter a big physical test for both players. It was the Frenchman’s ability to capitalise at key moments, particularly as Fritz tired towards the end of the match, that proved crucial.

Mpetshi Perricard broke his opponent’s serve in a dramatic 11th game of the second set in which Fritz let slip a 30/0 lead and struggled to put away winners in the slow conditions. The World No. 37 then served out successfully to wrap a victory in which he fired 12 aces and did not face a break point, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

“Before this my record was not good, 0-6 [against Top 10 players],” said Mpetshi Perricard, who plays Holger Rune in the fourth round. “Some of the matches were tough losses for me. I was very close against [Lorenzo] Musetti, against [Fritz] at Wimbledon, and I had a lot of things to improve. I tried to do a few things better than at Wimbledon, and it worked today.

“It was a tough match, physically and mentally, but I did well and I’m very happy about it.”

While third-round defeat in Shanghai is a setback in Fritz’s bid to secure qualification for the Nitto ATP Finals, the American remains well placed to reach the season finale. He is fifth in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin, 450 points clear of Musetti in the final qualification spot.

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