Miami: Mensik Dashes Djokovic’s Dreams of Capturing First ATP 1000 Title

A 19-year-old Czech teenager, Jakub Mensik, took down former World No. 1 and 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic to become the ATP Masters 1000 Miami Open presented by Itaú champion on Sunday in a rain-delayed final that lasted 2 hours and 4 minutes.

“It was not the first time I’ve played against Novak. There is no harder task in tennis than to beat him in the finals. But, of course, I felt really great, and it’s my time, so I just tried to focus on the match like I did before in previous rounds.” Jakub Mensik

Mensik beat his idol, 7-6(4) 7-6(4), in a historic upset achieved in the humidity of the Hard Rock Stadium, but only after the final was delayed by five-and-a-half hours due to rain.

The young Czech had taken the first set off Djokovic by the same score in their only other meeting in Shanghai before losing in 3 sets, but this time, the momentum appeared to stay with him.

The second set was a nip-and-tuck affair, though, with neither able to break, until, again, Mensik’s power proved decisive in the tiebreak, and when Djokovic went long on a return to hand him victory, he dropped down onto his back in celebration.

“To be honest, I don’t know what to say. It feels incredible, obviously,” Mensik said in his on-court interview. “It was probably the biggest day of my life, and I did super, which I’m really glad [about], to show the performance and keep the nerves outside of the court before the match.

“I feel just super happy and, I think, that the feelings will come later,” he added.

Mensik fired 14 aces to claim his first Masters 1000 title while denying Djokovic his landmark 100th career title.

It left Djokovic with a “sour taste” in his mouth after the loss, who was struggling with a stye under his right eye, and he showed his frustration toward his box in the closing stages, where his coach Andy Murray sat.

The 37-year-old tried his best to remain magnanimous in defeat, sharing a heartfelt and sweaty hug with Mensik after his winning moment.

Mensik, ranked 54 in the world, has made no secret of the fact that he grew up with Djokovic as his idol and, after receiving the trophy, he said that he started his career in the hope of emulating the Serb.

“It was not the first time I’ve played against Novak,” said Mensik. “There is no harder task in tennis than to beat him in the finals. But, of course, I felt really great, and it’s my time, so I just tried to focus on the match like I did before in previous rounds.”

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Mensik started strongly breaking Djokovic’s first serve game to go 2-0 up and the tall, big-serving Czech was dominating until, at 4-2, Djokovic broke back when the challenger found the net.

The set remained on serve from then on, but, in the tiebreak, Mensik’s powerful serve produced 2 aces, which put him in charge from the outset.

He opened up a 5-0 lead and, although the Serb fought back, the teenager sealed the set with an overhead.

It was the first set that Djokovic had lost in the entire tournament, in which he twice lost his footing, ending up on his back, and prompting him to change his footwear in the change-over.

Mensik revealed later that he had been close to pulling out of the tournament before his first match due to knee inflammation, but physiotherapy had produced the desired results at the last minute.

Djokovic, who after the match declined to discuss the problem with his eye, paid tribute to the Czech’s display.

“This is Jakub’s moment, a moment of his team, a moment of his family. Congratulations, unbelievable tournament,” he said. “It hurts me to admit it, but you were better. In a clutch moment, you delivered the goods.

“Unbelievable serving, and just a phenomenal effort, mentally, as well, to stay tough in a difficult moment. For a young player like yourself, this is a great feature. Something that I’m sure you will use many times in the years to follow,” Djokovic added. “I wish you the best of luck. Maybe you’ll let me win one of the next times we play.”

The match between the 37-year-old Djokovic and Mensik was the biggest age gap difference in a Masters 1000 final, and the biggest age gap of any tour-level final since 1976.

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Djokovic’s tone was somewhat different in his press conference, where he hinted at the external factors that had hampered his game.

“It’s never pleasant to lose, but I have to say that Jakub is one of the few players against whom I am most joyful to fall in a final, to be honest,” he said. “I met him when he was 15 or 16 years old and invited him to train together in Belgrade.

“Seeing his evolution is fantastic. Three or four years ago, I already predicted that he would become one of the best in the world, so I am very happy that he is harnessing his potential. It was a strange match; I didn’t feel quite right at any moment.

“There is nothing that can detract from Mensik’s victory, so I prefer not to talk about certain things. I don’t want it to seem like I am justifying my defeat—it is the same for both players, and you have to accept all circumstances.

“I leave with a sour taste for losing the final, but I have regained good feelings, both on and off the court. I am very grateful for the support received and have enjoyed the experience, besides playing well all week, except for today.”

The 19-year-old became the second-youngest titlist in tournament history behind Carlos Alcaraz, who lifted the trophy in 2022 as an 18-year-old.

This was only Mensik’s 2nd ATP Tour final, but he showed few nerves in by far the biggest match of his career.

Djokovic has the best tiebreak winning percentage on record, at nearly 66%, but Mensik was the calmer player under pressure, winning both breakers to improve to 7-0 in tiebreaks in the tournament, during which he also eliminated Indian Wells champion Jack Draper in 2 tiebreak sets in the 2nd round.

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Mensik entered the match fresh off a victory against Taylor Fritz, the World No. 4, and retained his momentum to start against Djokovic, surging to a 3-0 lead.

When the Czech teen hit a backhand up the line into the net to give the break back, the pressure was on from the 40-time ATP Masters 1000 champion, but Djokovic grew increasingly frustrated on return, consistently speaking with his box.

That frustration carried into the tiebreak, in which it was the Serb who cracked as Mensik quickly grabbed a 5-0 lead, showing his athleticism with a backhand smash, while allowing Djokovic to make mistakes, both physically, and with his shot selection.

The 6-time Miami champion made his opponent earn the set, pulling to within a 6-4 deficit, but Mensik closed out the opener with an overhead and turned towards his box to let out a roar.

Djokovic found his rhythm from the back of the court early in the second, applying plenty of pressure on his young opponent, but Mensik was relentless with his accurate serve.

The Czech faced just one break point in the match and won 77% of his first-serve points, adding to his 111 aces fired across 6 matches, including 14 in the final.

After letting a return go on his first match point, watching Djokovic’s shot paint the baseline, Mensik did not panic and instead delivered another un-returnable serve before celebrating his special win.

The Prostejov native is just the 5th teenager to defeat Djokovic on the ATP Tour, joining Filip Krajinovic (2010 Belgrade, retired after the first set), Alcaraz (2022 Madrid), Holger Rune (2022 Paris-Bercy), and Stefanos Tsitsipas (2018 Toronto) by achieving the feat.

Mensik, who 2 years ago was the World No. 390, will climb to a career-high of 24 in Monday’s rankings, passing Jiri Lehecka to become the 2nd-ranked Czech behind No. 21 Tomas Machac.

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