Novak Djokovic needed medical attention after losing the second set but recovered to beat Jaume Munar 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 in hot and humid conditions at the Shanghai Masters on Tuesday.
After losing a long rally by sending a forehand wide to end the second set, Djokovic slumped to the ground and remained sprawled on his back with his forearm over his eyes for several seconds. He then slowly sat up and rested his head between his legs before he was helped back to his chair by a trainer.
He was given medical treatment in his chair before the start of the third set but then broke Munar straight away after his opponent missed a simple overhead when leading 40-15.
The 38-year-old Djokovic declined to do the traditional on-court interview after the match but wrote on X: “Tough day at the office. Very challenging physically.”
The win made Djokovic the oldest man to reach the last eight at an ATP Masters 1000 event — two months older than Roger Federer was when he reached the quarterfinals in Shanghai in 2019.
Djokovic is chasing a record-extending 41st Masters title.
He will next face Zizou Bergs of Belgium.
Tenth-seeded Holger Rune also came through a tough challenge, defeating big-serving Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 6-4, 6-7 (7), 6-3.
De Minaur gets 50th tour-level win, advances to Shanghai Masters QFs
Alex de Minaur of Australia recorded his 50th tour-level victory of the season on Wednesday at the Shanghai Masters, moving past Nuno Borges 7-5, 6-2 to reach his seventh ATP Masters 1000 quarterfinal.
De Minaur is just the third man to hit the 50-win mark in 2025, joining Carlos Alcaraz (67) and Taylor Fritz (50), with the Australian earning a tour-leading 37 victories on hard courts, according to ATP stats.
The Australian’s previous best season in 2024 culminated in 47 wins and two titles. Having lifted the trophy at the ATP 500 event in Washington in August, the 26-year-old is chasing his second title of the year in Shanghai, where he will next meet Daniil Medvedev or NextGenATP American Learner Tien.
De Minaur arrived in Shanghai off the back of a semifinal finish in Beijing. His latest run is further improving his ATP Finals qualification chances. The 10-time tour-level champion is seventh in the ATP Live Race To Turin, 740 points clear of 10th-placed Felix Auger-Aliassime, who is the first player outside the Top 8 cut due to ninth-placed Jack Draper being sidelined for the rest of the year with injury, ATP reports.
Earlier in the day, Arthur Rinderknech defeated Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 7-6(5) to reach his maiden Masters 1000 quarterfinal. The Frenchman has joined his cousin Valentin Vacherot in the last eight.
Following his win, Rinderknech wrote a message of support for qualifier Vacherot, who is the first Monegasque player to reach a tour-level quarterfinal in history.