Novak Djokovic falls short of 100th ATP title in Shanghai

World No. 4 Novak Djokovic fell short of his quest for his 100th ATP title Sunday, losing to World No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the final of the Shanghai Masters.

Djokovic, playing in his career 141st ATP final, was trying to join Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103) as only the third player in history to win 100 titles. Despite the loss, he still owns the record for most ATP 1000 titles (40) and majors (24) in history, not to mention the best win-loss percentage (.835) among all players in the Open Era.

The Serb lost in straight sets, 7-6, 6-3, on Sunday, marking his third consecutive defeat to Sinner following earlier losses in the 2024 Australian Open and 2023 Davis Cup semifinal. As a result, Sinner and Djokovic are now 4-4 in career head-to-head matchups.

After the loss, Djokovic admitted that Sinner might have his number, at least for now, as he compared the Italian's skill set to his own.

“I did my best tonight," Djokovic said after the loss, via Tennis365. "Under the circumstances, you know, I felt maybe not a hundred percent fresh, but at the same time, big credit to Jannik for playing the big points better than me, and that’s what made the difference. He deserved to win, he was just too strong in important moments. But, nevertheless, I still think that even in the finals today, I played pretty good, so, which, you know, gives me, I guess, reason to believe that I can still play with these guys that are best in the world at this level."

Djokovic could end 2024 with just one title — the 2024 Paris Olympics — as he's unsure about his availability for the year-ending events. In comparison, he won seven titles in 2023, five in 2022 and five in 2021.

As for Sinner, the Shanghai Masters title marked the Italian's sixth title of 2024, following his wins at the Australian Open, Rotterdam, Miami, Halle, Cincinnati and U.S. Open. The Italian has already secured the year-ending World No. 1 ranking in light of his remarkable 65-6 record in the calendar year. He will get an opportunity to add to the trophy collection at the Paris Masters in France and ATP Finals in Turin, Italy.