Djokovic wins seventh Beijing title as injured De Minaur retires

Novak Djokovic is still unbeaten in Beijing. On Tuesday the 39-year-old won his seventh China Open title when Alex de Minaur retired with a groin injury early in the second set. Djokovic had taken a hard-fought opening set 7-6(3), and the official score reads 7-6(3), 0-1 retired, with De Minaur having held the first game of the second set.

The title is the 102nd of Djokovic's career, leaving him one behind Roger Federer's 103. His record at the China Open now stands at 34 wins and no defeats.

A final cut short

The opening set was a physical battle that went to a tie-break, and Djokovic pulled away to take it 7-3. Both players then received medical attention. De Minaur left the court for treatment. He came back and held serve to start the second set, but he could not continue.

The Australian apologised to the crowd in his on-court speech. "I want to say sorry to all the amazing fans that came to watch this match. I didn't want to finish like this, so really, really sorry," he said, according to Tennis365. He also paid tribute to his opponent: "Look, first of all congrats to you, mate. To you and your team, it was pretty amazing as a fan of the sport to watch the tennis you produced this whole week." Asked about his condition, he said only: "I don't feel great."

The 27-year-old was trying to become the first Australian to win the event. This was his third final of 2026 and his tenth at ATP 500 level. On the way to the final he beat Andrey Rublev and came from behind against Quentin Halys. He then reached the title match when Hubert Hurkacz retired injured in the second set of their semi-final.

Records keep falling

Djokovic's week in Beijing produced plenty of history. He beat three top-10 players at a single event for the first time in three years. That run included a 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 quarter-final win over world No. 2 Alexander Zverev and a semi-final against Daniil Medvedev, which ended when the Russian was disqualified for hitting a spectator.

According to Tennis Majors, Djokovic has now won at least one title in 21 consecutive seasons, an Open Era record. He is also the first man since Ken Rosewall in 1977 to win a tour-level title after turning 39, and the oldest ATP 500 champion since the category was created in 2009.

Sinner ends 2026 season with knee injury, will miss Turin and Davis Cup

"I was just trying to find a good feeling on the court," Djokovic said after the final, as reported by TSN. He described his season as "quite challenging" because of physical problems.

Turin back in play

Beijing also changes Djokovic's end-of-season picture. Tennis Majors projects him to rise from No. 11 to No. 8 in next Monday's rankings. He moves to ninth in the race for the ATP Finals, which puts a place in Turin back within reach. De Minaur is tenth in the Race, just behind him, so his groin injury could hardly have come at a worse time.

Both men are entered in the Shanghai Masters, which starts on Wednesday. Djokovic is in the same half of the draw as top seed Zverev. Whether De Minaur can take part depends on how his groin recovers in the next few days.