Djokovic beats Vacherot in three sets at the Paris Masters

Djokovic gets his revenge on Vacherot

Novak Djokovic defeated Valentin Vacherot 6-7 (5/7), 7-5, 6-1 on the opening day of the Paris Masters, AFP reports. For the 39-year-old Serb, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, it is his first win at an ATP 1000 event since reaching the fourth round at Indian Wells in March. He also got his revenge on Vacherot: in their second meeting, the Monegasque, who beat Djokovic on his way to a sensational title at the Shanghai Masters last season, lost again.

How the match unfolded

The first set, played on even terms, was decided in a tiebreak where Vacherot made a four-point surge. Early in the second set, Djokovic, having been broken early, took a medical timeout for a massage of his right shoulder — a pause that, according to AFP correspondents, knocked Vacherot off his rhythm, and he immediately dropped his serve. The 27-year-old Monegasque then received treatment for a foot problem, while Djokovic converted his first break point in the 12th game of the set to level the match. In the deciding set, the 10th seed broke immediately and closed out the match. 'I knew going out on court that the match would be very tough, and that's how it turned out,' AFP quotes Djokovic as saying, adding that Vacherot is 'one of the best servers in the game.' Last week, Vacherot won the second title of his career in Basel.

The ATP Finals and next opponent

The win keeps Djokovic's chances of playing at the ATP Finals in Turin in late November alive: he stands 11th in the race for eight spots. The Serb himself said his main goal is not the ATP Finals but to 'win every match' at the Paris tournament, where he claimed a seventh title in 2023, the last time he won it. In the next round, Djokovic will face Rinky Hijikata.

Other results of the day

Ben Shelton, the third seed and US Open finalist who received a first-round bye, beat Cameron Norrie 6-3, 6-4 in 71 minutes and will face the winner of the Mattia Bellucci — Arthur Rinderknech match in the round of 16. Holger Rune, who beat Djokovic in the 2022 final and is returning from injury, was eliminated in the first round, losing to Tommy Paul 7-5, 6-4. Andrey Rublev lost to Tomas Martin Etcheverry in a third-set tiebreak, 15th seed Learner Tien defeated lucky loser Adolfo Daniel Vallejo in three sets, Matteo Berrettini overcame 14th-ranked Brandon Nakashima 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (10/8), and Taylor Fritz handled Benjamin Bonzi in three sets. 17-year-old Frenchman Moise Kouame, unable to repeat his Roland Garros success, lost to lucky loser Nuno Borges 6-3, 6-1. In the evening, 20-year-old Spaniard Rafael Jodar faced former world No. 2 Casper Ruud.