Novak Djokovic continued his resurgence at the China Open in Beijing by overcoming top seed Alexander Zverev in a three-set quarterfinal match on Thursday. The 39-year-old Serbian triumphed 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in a two-hour and 34-minute contest, extending his winning streak to 32 matches and setting up a semifinal clash against Daniil Medvedev.
Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, acknowledged the match as one of his best performances of the year, comparing it to his notable five-set victory over Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open. Despite acknowledging the challenges of maintaining peak physical form against younger competitors, he credited his improved health for enabling him to play aggressive, high-risk tennis against the German player.
The match began unfavorably for Djokovic as he committed two double faults in the opening game, allowing Zverev to break serve early. A controversy arose soon after when an umpire ruled to replay a point Djokovic had initially won, following Zverev’s complaint about a flicker on the LED screens, drawing boos from the Beijing crowd. Zverev secured the first set, but Djokovic rallied to claim the second set with a decisive cross-court winner.
Throughout the match, Djokovic faced 19 aces from Zverev but maintained composure, ultimately breaking the world number two’s serve in the final set to seal the victory. With this win, Djokovic will face Medvedev—who defeated Francisco Cerundolo 7-6 (7/4), 6-3—in the semifinals.
In other men’s quarterfinal results, Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz advanced by defeating Karen Khachanov and will meet Australia’s Alex de Minaur, who came from behind to beat Andrey Rublev 1-6, 6-2, 6-3.
On the women’s side, the tournament saw the early exit of top seeds, including Aryna Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina. Sabalenka, who was visibly frustrated during her match, lost in straight sets to 20-year-old Czech player Nikola Bartunkova. Bartunkova, currently ranked 34th, delivered four aces en route to a 6-4, 6-3 victory over the four-time Grand Slam winner. Bartunkova will face Austria’s Sinja Kraus in the round of 16.
Rybakina, who recently assumed the world number one ranking, was eliminated in the second round by Alina Charaeva. Other notable results include Russia’s Mirra Andreeva, the French Open champion, advancing to face Ukraine’s Daria Snigur in the fourth round. Wimbledon champion Linda Noskova moved through convincingly with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Viktorija Golubic and awaits a match against Russia’s Ekaterina Alexandrova.
Former champion Naomi Osaka also progressed by defeating Sara Bejlek and is set to face either Karolina Muchova or Liudmila Samsonova in the next round. The tournament continues with anticipation building around several high-profile matchups in both the men's and women's draws.