Novak Djokovic has had a stunning return to the US after two years. After going down in the doubles campaign in his very first match on comeback, Djokovic made it count in singles, where he reached the quarterfinal on late Thursday night after yet another win against Gael Monfils at the Cincinnati Masters. And with the win, Djokovic scripted another Open Era record after surpassing his long-time rival Rafael Nadal, who has been absent from the tour since January this year and will likely remain in the sidelines for the remainder of the season.
It was a routine victory for Djokovic on Centre Court, who beat Monfils 6-3, 6-2, as the Serb notched up his 19th straight win against the Frenchman without a single loss. It now stands as the greatest unbeaten streak by a player against a single opponent in men’s singles Open Era, surpassing Nadal’s 18-0 record against Richard Gasquet, also from France.
“It was kind of an evolution of both players over the past 15-plus years that we’ve been playing each other in different parts of the world, also in juniors,” Djokovic said of their history. “I think early on I struggled a lot with him, I think physically as well. When you play on of the most athletic guys on the Tour, you have to be ready, every ball comes back. A couple of points today, especially in the first set he showed his athleticism.”
Monfils, who beat Stefanos Tsitsipas last week in his run to Canadian Open quarters and got the better of Cameron Norrie and an in-form Alex de Minaur in Ohio, was never a threat to Djokovic, having managed to break only once in the second set. But Djokovic denied him a comeback opportunity as he wrapped up the match in a little over an hour, as he completed victory in his first completed match since that heartbreaking loss in Wimbledon final to Carlos Alcaraz. The 36-year-old, who was won his opening match in Cincinnati Masters after opponent Alejandro Davidovich Fokina retired in the second set, now remains on course for a potential rematch against Alcaraz in the final and reclaim his world No. 1 title.
Djokovic next faces Taylor Fritz, who reached the quarters after Laslo Djere retired in the opening set. The Atlanta Open champion, who is 31-8 on hard courts his season, has made the last eight for the second straight time in Cincinnati. This will also be his seventh meeting against Djokovic although the Serb has won all six of them.
