Jakub Mensik stunned Novak Djokovic to claim his maiden ATP title as he beat the Serbian legend 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4) at the Miami Open final on Monday, March 31. The 19-year-old became the ninth youngest to clinch an ATP title after handing his childhood idol an upset for the ages.
Despite playing with a swollen eye, Djokovic gave a tough fight to the youngster, dragging both the sets into a tie-breaker. However, Mensik beat the odds and emerged victorious over the 24-time Grand Slam champion, scoring 14 aces.
As a result, Djokovic was denied 100th title win of his career as he failed to join Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103) as the only men in the Open Era with 100 or more career titles.
Having beaten his idol in the final, Mensik had nothing but respect for Djokovic as he thanked him for inspiring him to play tennis and even hailed him as the greatest of all time.
“Novak, everyone knows you’re the one the reason I’m here. I watched you growing up. I started to play tennis because of you. There is not a harder task for a tennis player than to beat you in the final of a tournament. Thank you so much for everything you’ve done in this sport and for everyone. You’re an incredible person. The greatest of all time,” said Mensik in his on-court interview.
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