Novak Djokovic has returned to the Shanghai Masters for the first time in five years as he looks to gain further silverware this year.
Djokovic played tennis on the Great Wall of China ahead of the ATP Masters 1,000 tournament in Shanghai.
But he is now in the city as he looks to extend his success at the event, with Djokovic’s four titles a Shanghai Masters record.
Djokovic celebrated Olympic gold earlier this year, with the Serbian veteran edging past young star Carlos Alcaraz in Paris.
But he has struggled to shine since then, with the 24-time Grand Slam champion suffering a shock US Open third round exit.
Novak Djokovic impressed by Shanghai Masters facilities
Alcaraz meanwhile has gone on to shine at the Laver Cup and the China Open, beating Jannik Sinner in the final of the latter.
Several Chinese players have also been impressing during the Asian swing, much to the delight of Djokovic.
Speaking in his Shanghai Masters press conference, he analysed where Chinese tennis is currently at, saying: “It seems like the future is bright for Chinese tennis in both men and women, both women and men’s sides. I like to see that.
“You know, I was actually hoping that there’s going to be men that are going to break the top 100, top 50 in the world, and now you have not one but several of those guys that are really playing some good quality tennis.
“I don’t think that the dedication or putting in the effort was ever a problem. I think the Chinese mentality is such that, when they are dedicated to something, they’re really dedicated to something, you can see that, so working hard is not an issue here.
“But it was just a kind of a wait for someone, on the men’s side particularly, to really break through, so that others mentally can really believe that they have the quality, they have the capacity to go far.
“So that’s what’s happening now. It will be very interesting to see, on the men’s side, how the tennis players will evolve. I think it can only go up because of the good mentality and I guess the overall great investment in tennis.
“I mean, some of the best tennis facilities in the world, some of the best tennis stadiums in the world are here. You know, Shanghai, Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, all these cities have incredible facilities. Like, I don’t think, other than slams, we have these kind of facilities anywhere. So yeah, I’m really happy to see, excited to see how the Chinese tennis will grow in the future.”
Chinese stars impress on home soil at China Open
Djokovic certainly isn’t wrong about the Chinese tennis boom, with 22-year-old Yunchaokete Bu making it all the way to the China Open semi-finals.
He knocked out Andrey Rublev and Lorenzo Musetti in Beijing, before eventually falling to world number one Jannik Sinner.
In a similar adventure on the WTA Tour, Zhang Shuai overcame US Open semi-finalist on her way to the China Open quarter-finals.
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She secured a straight sets win over the sixth seed, before eventually losing to Spanish star Paula Badosa.
Another Chinese ace in Qinwen Zheng meanwhile is into the China Open quarter-finals, having won Olympic gold like Djokovic in Paris.
Further success for home players could arrive at the Shanghai Masters, with Shang Juncheng among those to watch.
He won his maiden ATP Tour title at the Chengdu Open last month, and has now been drawn to face China Open champion Alcaraz in Shanghai.
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