Djokovic and Zverev clash in Beijing

Novak Djokovic returns to the Beijing tournament, where he has never lost a match in all the editions he has played in the Chinese capital. It's not a bad place to try to regain some feelings at the end of a tough year for Nole, who comes from suffering two heavy defeats in the summer in his last two tournaments. However, he hasn't had much luck with the draw, as he would face Alexander Zverev in the quarter-finals.

As of today, Nole and Sascha find themselves on completely different levels. The German is seeking a title in Beijing that would allow him to take on the number 1 spot in Shanghai. That's significant. The Serbian, for his part, is looking for some victories to restore joy and confidence to his tennis, after two matches in the US where he showed tremendous struggles physically.

Novak Djokovic's Draw in Beijing

The Serbian begins against Nuno Borges. He already defeated him last year in Athens, in a quite tight match on the scoreboard. The Portuguese had a decent North American tour, reaching the third round in both Masters 1000 tournaments in the summer, but fell in his debut at the US Open. Based on the feelings of both players, the Serbian will be the favorite by status, that is clear, but we would dare to say that Borges has many chances to make an upset since Djokovic's level was low in his last two tournaments.

If he manages to advance to the second round, Nole would face the winner of the match between Juanma Cerúndolo and Bu Yunchaokete. The Chinese player is playing at home and will be favored against the Argentine. Being able to face Djokovic will surely serve as motivation for him, especially after what he did at the US Open, defeating Jódar in a fantastic match.

And watch out for what could come here. By chance, Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic could meet in the quarter-finals. The German, who needs to win in Beijing to arrive in Shanghai with a chance to step on the Number 1 rank for the first time in his career, will be the big favorite in this tournament, although his debut will not be easy.

Djokovic returns to Beijing, where he has never lost a match in his entire career.

The draw he has ahead this year is tough.

1R-Borges
2R-JM Cerúndolo/Yunchaokete
CF-Zverev
SF-Medvedev/Mensik/Bublik
Final-Tien/Auger Aliassime/Cobolli/De Miñaur

Not easy, actually… pic.twitter.com/WBzMq4nmUp

— José Morón (@jmgmoron) September 28, 2026

He will start against the always dangerous Cameron Norrie. It is true that Sascha has never lost in the eight times he has faced the Brit, but they have been very tight matches between the two. A demanding duel could leave him a bit shaken for the subsequent rounds, with Shang and Báez as potential rivals in the second round. Still, Zverev is a strong favorite to reach those quarter-finals. The question would be whether Djokovic could make it as well.

In the second quadrant appear names like Jakub Mensik or Daniil Medvedev. Watch out for the Czech, who will face the big threat in the draw: Alexander Bublik, in the first round. The Beijing tournament has a higher concentration of top-ranked tall opponents compared to Tokyo, and this is evident in this kind of match-ups we have in the draw.

Bottom Half of the Draw

Below we have Félix Auger-Aliassime, who remains the second seed in tournaments like this. The Canadian arrives at a part of the season that has historically not been bad for him. He will start against Khachanov, in a match where he could easily be out in the early stages. Then he might face Rinderknech. As we said, the Beijing tournament is extremely tough for any opponent.

Also appearing here are Tien (hard debut against Hurkacz), Flavio Cobolli (debut against Safiullin), or Alex de Miñaur (debut against Navone and possibly facing Buse in the second round). In short, a very tough draw, and anyone who wants to emerge victorious from here will have to bring their best level.

Beijing ATP 500 Main Draw Singles pic.twitter.com/sMkPR7kVMS

— Tennis Draws (@DrawsTennis) September 28, 2026

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Djokovic y Zverev chocan en Pekín