Novak Djokovic excited to return to China Open after 11 years

Novak Djokovic has confirmed his return to the China Open in Beijing after an 11-year absence. The 24-time Grand Slam champion last played at the ATP 500 event in 2015 and will return following his first-round US Open defeat

New Delhi: Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic has confirmed that he will return to Beijing for the China Open, marking his first appearance at the ATP 500 tournament in 11 years.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion made the announcement on social media on Wednesday, sharing a message in both Chinese and English as he expressed his excitement at returning to a city where he enjoyed remarkable success earlier in his career.

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“I am very happy to announce that I’m coming back to Beijing after many years to play at the China Open. I’m so excited to be back and to perform in front of you all at the National Tennis Centre, one of the nicest venues in tennis, a place where I have incredible memories and great successes throughout my career. I want to thank all the Chinese fans for their years-long love and support,” Djokovic said in a video shared on Instagram.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion last played at the China Open in 2015 and had previously made six appearances at the tournament between 2009 and 2015.

The 39-year-old will return to the Chinese capital after a difficult outing at the recently concluded US Open, where he suffered a shock first-round defeat to Argentina’s Mariano Navone.

Navone defeated the fourth-seeded Djokovic 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 in a marathon four-hour, 36-minute encounter at Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York. It was Djokovic’s first opening-round defeat at a Grand Slam since 2006.

Djokovic had made a strong start against Navone but struggled physically as the match progressed, particularly in the final two sets.

Following the defeat, Djokovic described his experience on court as “an awful feeling” and revealed that he had been dealing with physical problems during matches this season.

“I think it was obvious that it was an awful feeling on the court for me. It’s something that I’ve been carrying, unfortunately, pretty much every match this year. Vomiting, throwing up — a serious issue there. Then my whole body starts to collapse, basically cramping and in pain,” Djokovic said after the loss, as quoted by the ATP.

“Yeah, the back just gave up in the end and the shoulder, and I couldn’t close it out,” he added.

The US Open defeat also saw Djokovic drop out of the ATP top 10 for the first time in several years, with the Serbian currently ranked No. 12 in the world.