Novak Djokovic overcame Jaume Munar 6-3 5-7 6-2 in 2 hours and 40 minutes to reach the quarter finals at the Shanghai Rolex Masters for the 11th time in his career.
Djokovic earned a break in the fourth game to take a 3-1 lead and held three service games to close out the first set 6-3.
Both players held on serve until the seventh game of the second set. Djokovic saved a break point at 3-4.The four-time Shanghai champion wasted a game point as he was serving to stay in the set at 5-6. Munar earned a break point to seal the second set 7-5.
Djokovic won four consecutive points on return in the first game to earn an early break in the first game of the third set. Djokovic held at love in the second dgame and missed a break point at 2-0.
Djokovic held at love in the sixth game to take a 4-2 lead with a backhand winner down the line. The Serbian player earned another break in the seventh game and served for the win at 5-2. He served out the win on the second match point.
Djokovic is chasing his 41st Masters 1000 title and his first since he won in Paris in 2023.
Djokovic is playing his first tournament since losing in a fourth consecutive Grand Slam semifinal at the US Open. Djokovic is the highest ranked player left in the draw after a withdrawal from top seed Carlos Alcaraz and early defeats from Jannik Sinner and Alexander Zverev.
Djokovic set up a quarter final match against Zizou Bergs, who came back from one set down to beat Gabriel Diallo 3-6 7-5 7-6 (10-8).
