A star was born on Sunday night at the Miami Open.
That’s not to say Mensik came completely out of nowhere this fortnight, but he had never won an ATP title. Now he is a Masters 1000 champion.
The 19-year-old stunned Novak Djokovic 7-6(4), 7-6(4) in two hours and three minutes for a win that will propel him to 24th in the rankings and sixth in the 2025 race to Turin. Mensik fired 14 aces while double-faulting only once and he faced just one break point in the entire match.
“To be honest, I don’t know what to say,” Mensik said during his on-court interview. “It feels incredible, obviously. It was probably the biggest day of my life and I did super, which I’m really glad [about]–to show the performance and keep the nerves outside of the court before the match. I feel just super happy and I think that the feelings will come later.
“There is no harder task in tennis than to beat [Djokovic] in the finals. But of course I felt really great and it’s my time, so I just tried to focus on the match like I did before in previous rounds.”
But there was nothing similar about this match any other match he previously played in Miami–or anywhere else. This was the biggest match of Mensik’s career and it came against his idol, a 24-time Grand Slam champion. Moreover, it required two tiebreakers–where Djokovic is generally at his absolute best. But just as he was throughout the event, the teenager was too good and served too big when it mattered most. In six Miami matches he compiled a 7-0 record in tiebreakers.
Djokovic remains one title short of milestone No. 100 in his illustrious career.
“This is Jakub’s moment–moment of his team, moment of his family,” the 37-year-old said during the trophy ceremony. “Congratulations. Unbelievable tournament. 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.”
what a performance
Bravo, Mensik….gutsy performance!
Bit late for that
he has a habit of making picks (even bad ones!) after the fact!
and why would he care what you think?
yep