Novak Djokovic wins seventh China Open in Beijing and addresses crowd in Mandarin

Novak Djokovic won the 2026 China Open in Beijing on Tuesday, defeating Australia's Alex de Minaur in a final that ended when the Australian retired with a groin injury.

Djokovic had taken the opening set 7-6(3) and the match lasted one hour and 14 minutes; after the retirement he spoke in Mandarin during his on-court interview and thanked the crowd, securing a record seventh China Open trophy in his return to the event.

The Serbian returned to Beijing for the first time in 11 years and added the 2026 title to earlier wins in 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. He had not played in Beijing since beating Rafael Nadal in the 2015 final. The victory left him with a perfect China Open record of 34-0, having won every edition of the tournament he has contested.

Djokovic's route to the final included a straight-sets opening win over Portugal's Nuno Borges and a three-set round-of-16 victory against China's Bu Yunchaokete, after which he thanked fans who had stayed in the stadium until almost midnight. He defeated second seed Alexander Zverev 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals. In the semifinals he led Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 5-3 when Medvedev was defaulted after hitting a ball into the stands that struck a spectator; Djokovic was three points from victory when the match ended.

After lifting the trophy Djokovic spoke about his return and the season, saying: "It's been 11 years since I played here last, and honestly, I always have high expectations of myself. I obviously want to always visualise myself with a trophy, particularly here in Beijing - a place where I've never lost," he said. "But I was also quite aware that reality is a little bit different these days, 11 years later. This year has been quite challenging for me, with lots of ups and downs, physical and health issues, etc."

The China Open was Djokovic's first tournament since his shock first-round defeat to Argentina's Mariano Navone at the US Open last month, and it was his first title of a difficult 2026 season. His on-court Mandarin delighted the Beijing crowd and followed previous occasions when he has used the language to acknowledge local support.

The victory moved Djokovic's career tour-level title count to 102, placing him one behind Roger Federer's 103 for second place in the Open Era, with only Jimmy Connors on 109 having more. At 39, he became the oldest man to win an ATP Tour singles title since Ken Rosewall in 1977.