Djokovic wins Beijing again at 39, eleven years after his sixth

Seven. That is how many China Open titles Novak Djokovic now holds, after Alex de Minaur retired a game into the second set of the final, a set down. Djokovic had taken the first set in a tiebreak, 7-6 (7-3), and de Minaur had just held for 1-0 in the second when he stopped: the score reads 7-6 0-1 RET. It is Djokovic's first Beijing title since 2015, and he won it at 39, seeded 6 and ranked 11.

The numbers frame a long return. Djokovic's six earlier Beijing titles came in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015, so this seventh arrives eleven years after the last. It is also the 103rd tour title of his career and his first of 2026, won as the sixth seed rather than the favourite.

The final itself was short. Djokovic took the first set in a tiebreak, 7-3, after the two reached 6-6, and de Minaur won the opening game of the second set to lead 1-0 before retiring a set down. Nobody faced a match point. The real test came earlier: in the quarter-final Djokovic beat world No. 2 Alexander Zverev, the top seed, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4, coming back from a set down. He had also recovered from a set down to beat Bu Yunchaokete in the round before.

What there was of the final favoured Djokovic. He won 18 of 20 first-serve points, saved the one break point he faced, and made 10 unforced errors to de Minaur's 19, though de Minaur hit 16 winners to Djokovic's 6. Djokovic now leads their head-to-head 3-1. His previous titles were Geneva and Athens, both in 2025.

Match tale, 6 October 2026, sources: China Open, api-tennis