It will be a battle between Nitto ATP Finals hopefuls when Novak Djokovic and Taylor Fritz clash for the 10th time in their careers in the semifinals of the Rolex Shanghai Masters on Saturday night.
This is one of the most lopsided matchups in all of tennis, with Djokovic sweeping the head-to-head series 9-0. The Serb is 4-0 on outdoor hard courts, where each of their last three encounters have come. Djokovic’s two most recent wins have come at Grand Slams; 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 in the 2023 U.S. Open quarterfinals and 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in the 2024 Australian Open quarters.
If there is any good news for Fritz, it’s that he is playing the best tennis of his career right now. The 26-year-old American is 49-19 for the season, placing him at fifth in the race to Turin. Fritz, who finished runner-up at the U.S. Open, has all but clinched his spot in the year-end championship thanks to this semifinal run in Shanghai–which has come at the expense of Terence Atmane, Yosuke Watanuki, Holger Rune, and David Goffin. He has not lost a single set.
Djokovic arrived in Shanghai at No. 9 in the race due to a number of factors. The 37-year-old has played a reduced schedule, results have been mediocre even when he has taken the court, he got injured at the French Open, and his best performance came at a tournament with no ranking points (gold medal at the Paris Olympics). However, Djokovic is up to seventh in the live race following victories this fortnight over Alex Michelsen, Flavio Cobolli, Roman Safiullin, and Jakub Mensik. The 24-time major champion needed a pair of tiebreakers against Michelsen and came back from a set down to defeat Mensik 6-7(4), 6-1, 6-4 on Friday.
This is a very winnable match for Fritz, but it’s hard to look past his 0-9 lifetime record in this matchup. Look for a Djokovic vs. Jannik Sinner final to come to fruition.
Pick: Djokovic in 3
