“I’m 19, and he’s still playing, you know,” remarked rising ATP star Jakub Mensik last October, ahead of his first encounter with Novak Djokovic at the Shanghai Masters. But the reality is, Djokovic’s career stretches back even further – Mensik wasn’t even born when Djokovic secured his first Masters 1000 match win. Just 17 days before Mensik’s birth on 1st September 2005, Djokovic triumphed in Paris against Victor Hanescu. This incredible timeline came full circle when Mensik recently defeated his idol, the six-time Miami Open champion, in Miami this year.
Playing against someone he grew up watching all his life, Mensik didn’t show a sign of weakness on Sunday. Although the match went into two tie-breaks, in first and second set, the teenager managed to snatch the win. The final score line read 7-6(4), 7-6(4) in his favor. After defeating his idol, Mensik was unable to control tears of joy. He bowed to Djokovic while hugging him for showing a top-notch performance, even though it came in a losing cause.
During the post-match conference, dated March 31, Mensik was asked about his perspective on Nole’s career. Admiring the Serbian, he said, “Even with all those titles, you know, and everything, what he accomplished already in this sport, and he’s still competing in the finals of the biggest tournaments on the ATP Tour.”
Moreover, Mensik also threw light on Djokovic’s unparalleled, two-decade long aura on the court. When asked “Do you realize, Jakub, that when Novak played his first Masters 1000, you weren’t even born?”, he exclaimed, “Wow (smiling).” He continued….
“Oh, my God. It’s crazy. It’s just — I don’t know what to say (smiling). He’s just showing his dominance, like 2004 actually, I think it was, when I was not born.” When reporters told him “it was 17 days before you were born”, the Czech star, who is now the “first teenager ever to defeat Novak Djokovic in straight sets in a completed tour-level match,” said, “All right. Oh, wow.” Impressed with their deep knowledge of stats, he joked, “You read the Wikipedia before?”
Fun fact: Novak Djokovic’s semi-final victory over Grigor Dimitrov at the Miami Open marked his 414th win at the Masters 1000 level. In doing so, he overtook Rafael Nadal to become the player with the most ATP Masters victories in history.
“I think that this, like I’m saying, it’s showing his dominance, like, 20 years ago he was already in the finals, and now 20 years later, he’s still in the finals. So he’s top 5 still. So it’s just crazy and unbelievable what he’s achieving in this sport during long period of the time. Imagining me in 20 years from now, which I will be 39 playing the finals? I hope so, but it’s, yeah, it’s crazy, like, to think about it like this.”
While the teenager kept adding to his praise of Djokovic, the latter also didn’t hold back. Even though the 2024 Paris Olympics gold medalist was hurt with a missed opportunity to clinch a 100th ATP title, he was super impressed with Mensik.
Novak Djokovic admires Jakub Mensik’s Miami Open triumph despite losing out on 100th ATP trophy
Alongside his 100th career title, Novak Djokovic also missed out on winning most number of Miami Open trophies. With his defeat, he’s still tied at 6-6 with former American great Andre Agassi. Meanwhile, with his latest victory over the Serb, the Czechian has leveled the h2h tally against his idol at 1-1, with the 37-year-old triumphing at their Shanghai clash.
Reflecting on his loss and the end result, Djokovic simply said, “This is Jakub’s moment — moment of his team, moment of his family. Congratulations, unbelievable tournament,” reported ATP’s website on March 31. Addressing Mensik in the post-match presentation ceremony, he added,
“It hurts me to admit it, but you were better! In the clutch moments, you delivered the goods (with) unbelievable serving and just a phenomenal effort mentally as well to stay tough in a difficult moment.” Later, in an official press conference, dated March 30, the Serbian continued to praise Mensik.
“Never really happy to lose, but he’s one of the very few players that I would be happier to lose to, to be honest. I have seen him play when he was 15 or 16 and invited him, we had some training blocks together. He was training at my club in Belgrade, and, you know, to see his development and evolution is really great, amazing.”
Trying to deal with the loss, he added, “Yeah, it’s unfortunate for me. Two tiebreaks. Just a very weird match, a weird day with a rain delay and all the things that is happening. Honestly, yeah, I didn’t feel my greatest on the court, but it is what it is. Nothing to take away from his victory.”
Apart from taking the trophy and 1000 ranking points, Mensik also took away a whopping $1,124,380 of prize money. Plus, he will also take a big leap in the ATP rankings after the list gets updated on Monday. For the first time in his career, the Czechian will break into top 25, securing the 24th position. What are your thoughts on the 19-year-old’s exceptional rise this season? Will he continue impressing in future events too? Let us know in the comments below.
The post “I Was Not Born” – Miami Open’s 19YO Champion Left in Awe as He Processes Novak Djokovic’s Endless Dominance appeared first on EssentiallySports.
