All-or-nothing for Djoko with ATP Finals looming

Novak Djokovic on Friday staked his claim on a spot in the ATP Finals after losing his opening match at the Shanghai Masters.

The winner of the Beijing title for a record seventh time, went down quickly in Shanghai to polish giant Hubi Hurkacz 6-4, 6-3 in 88 minutes.

The 39-year-old Djokovic showed the accumulated fatigue of nearly two weeks on court in Beijing as he took the defeat in the country’s commercial capital.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion currently holds the provisional eighth and final spot in the field due to the early season end for injured world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.

But to assure himself a return to the year-end field, the veteran Serb knows he must play the Paris Indoors the first week of November,

“I’m planning only to play in Paris or, let’s see. Hopefully, I can have a good result there,” he said as he left the court in Shanghai.

“Beijing was great. A very early exit here, but it’s okay. I’ve had a great week in Beijing, and I look forward to resting a little bit and getting ready for indoor (play).”

Hurkacz, who has missed months over the past few seasons with a knee operation and recovery, becomes only  the fourth man to defeat the iconic Big 3 on their personal preferred surfaces.

He has knocked out Djokovic on hard, Rafael Nadal on clay, and Roger Federer on grass, joining fellow spoilers Andy Murray, Dominic Thiem and Alexander Zverev.