Hubert Hurkacz produced a stellar win over former World No.1 Novak Djokovic on his return to the Shanghai Masters on Friday night in Shanghai, China.
Hurkacz evoked memories of his best in Shanghai as he defeated Djokovic for the first time in his career in the ninth attempt in a 6-4, 6-4 win. The Pole had won the tournament when he played the last time in 2023 and is now on an eight-game winning streak in Shanghai.
Meanwhile, Hurkacz has now become just the fourth man to register at least one win against all of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic on hard courts. Before him, Andy Murray, Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev had achieved the milestone.
Ben Shelton celebrated his 24th birthday on Friday by advancing to the third round with a 6-3, 7-6 (6) win over Daniel Altmaier while top-seeded Alexander Zverev beat Chinese wild-card entry Wu Yibing 6-4, 7-6 (4).