Novak Djokovic claimed his fourth-set tie-break against Alexei Popyrin was the best he has played this year after defeating the Australian at Wimbledon.
Djokovic came from a set down to beat Popyrin in four, confirming his place in the last 16 with a 3-6 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7-3) triumph. He will face Holger Rune next.
The world number two continued his record of having never lost to Popyrin in what was their third meeting, the previous one coming at the Australian Open earlier this year.
The Serbian praised Popyrin for his valiant effort, going on to admit the tie-break in the fourth saw him produce his highest level this year.
"It was another tough match. I didn’t expect anything less than what we experienced on the court today from Alexei," Djokovic said.
"I knew he was going to come to the match with confidence, a lot of self-belief. He was close to winning [when we played] in Australia earlier this year.
"With that serve and powerful forehand, he’s dangerous on any surface.
"I knew he was in form and he was going to come out believing he could win. He was the better player in the first set.
"I think I played a good second and third and the fourth was anybody’s game. He was serving very well. It was very difficult to read his serve.
"It was just a very challenging match, mentally as well, to hang in there. I'm not allowed to have big concentration lapses.
"I think I’ve done well in that regard in one of the best tie-breaks I’ve played this year, that’s for sure."
Data Debrief: Resilient Djokovic shows his class
While Djokovic was far from vintage in the first set, he showed the kind of resilience that we've seen throughout his career.
Djokovic became only the third player in the Open Era to achieve 50 Grand Slam match wins after turning 35, along with Ken Rosewall (64) and Roger Federer (62).
Djokovic recovers from slow start to move past Michelsen on Shanghai return
Novak Djokovic marked his Shanghai Masters return with a hard-fought straight-sets win over Alex Michelsen.
The four-time champion, who is appearing in this event for the first time since 2019, required two tie-breaks before prevailing 7-6 (7-3) 7-6 (11-9) in just under two hours.
Djokovic, still donning a protective sleeve over his right knee, made a slow start in only his second match since losing to Alexei Popyrin in the US Open third round, winning just four points in the first three games as he fell 4-1 behind.
However, the 24-time major winner broke back in the seventh game before dominating the tie-break for first blood.
Roles were reversed in the second set as Michelsen cancelled out an earlier break in game seven.
However, the American squandered two set points to level and was eventually punished by Djokovic, who will play either 28th seed Flavio Cobolli or three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka in the next round.
Data Debrief: Djokovic continues American dominance
Djokovic was given an early scare, but his experience eventually showed as he came through.
Including team events, the Serb has now won his last 33 ATP-level matches against American opponents, with his last such defeat coming against Sam Querrey at Wimbledon in 2016.
The 24-time major winner also demonstrated his determination when the pressure intensified, and he has now come through 12 of his 16 tie-breaks played this season.
Gauff fights back to beat Badosa in China Open semi-finals
Coco Gauff recovered from a set and a break down to reach the China Open final with a 4-6 6-4 6-2 victory over Paula Badosa on Saturday.
Having given up an early break in the opener, Gauff got one of her own by converting her eighth break point in a mammoth eighth game featuring 10 deuces, only for Badosa to hit back immediately to go a set up.
Gauff lost serve immediately in the second set to go on the back foot, only to level the match with back-to-back breaks, the second of them to love.
The decider began with a series of breaks, Gauff taking two of them as the momentum swung her way, then she protected her lead all the way to reach her first final since winning January's Auckland Open.
The 20-year-old is the youngest player to reach the women's singles final at the China Open since Caroline Wozniacki in 2010.
She has fought from a set down to win in each of her last three matches, the first time she has done so in her career. She is the first player to do so in WTA-1000 events since Iga Swiatek at Indian Wells 2022.
Data Debrief: Gauff brings up century
Saturday's match was Gauff's 100th at WTA 1000-level events, and her 67th such victory.
Among American players, only Serena Williams (87), Venus Williams and Jessica Pegula (70) have bettered her 67 wins through their first 100 matches at such events.
Sinner reaches 250 career wins after seeing off Daniel in Shanghai opener
Jannik Sinner notched up his 250th career win after defeating Taro Daniel in his Shanghai Masters opener.
The world number one wrapped up a commanding 6-1 6-4 victory over his Japanese opponent in just over an hour-and-a-quarter on Saturday.
Sinner, who is fresh from reaching the Beijing final last time out, is targeting his seventh silverware of the season, in which he has already triumphed at the Australian Open and US Open.
"I felt quite comfortable today," said the Italian, who set up a clash with 31st seed Tomas Etcheverry. "I also feel in good shape physically, which is very important for me.
"Of course, I will try to improve for tomorrow's performance, but today I was serving really, really well - especially in important moments - and was moving well."
Data Debrief: 250 up for Sinner
Sinner became the first player born in the 2000s to reach 250 career wins, while taking his tally for a remarkable campaign to 60.
The Italian, who won 64 matches last term, is the sixth player aged 23 or under to record 60 or more ATP wins in successive seasons, after Lleyton Hewitt, Andy Roddick, Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic.
Sinner also maintained his perfect record in opening-round matches this year (14-0), and is now 51-0 against players ranked outside the ATP top 20.
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