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Jakub Mensik, the Czechia tennis player, who is just 19 years of age, clinched his first ATP title of his young career after defeating his childhood hero Novak Djokovic from Serbia in straight sets 7-6 (7-4), 7-6 (7-4) in the final of the Miami Open. The 37-year-old Novak Djokovic, who was vying for his 100th ATP title, was stopped dead in his tracks by teenage sensation Jakub Mensik, and the latter celebrated his Miami Open title win in an emotional manner by falling on the court.
The final of the Miami Open was a pulsating affair from start to finish with both Novak Djokovic and Jakub Mensik throwing punches at each other. Each of the sets went to the tie-breakers, which were keenly contested until Mensik took the initiative when it mattered the most, to win the match, and with that, he became the ninth youngest champion in the history of the Masters 1000 tournaments on the ATP World Tour.
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It hurts me to admit it but you were better: Djokovic after Mensik's Miami Open win
Apart from that, Jakub Menisk is now the third youngest player to win the Miami Open after Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal. It has also meant that Novak Djokovic will have to wait more for his 100th ATP title win, and in another record that might surprise the fans quite a lot, the Serbian won the first of his 99 titles on the world tour in 2006 when Mensik wasn’t even a year old.
After winning the Miami Open, Jakub Mensik gave a hilarious take on his arrival to the tournament, and said, as per BBC Sport, “One hour before my first match here I was holding the paper to pull out from the tournament. I was just lucky that the referee was having lunch. I came for the treatment. He did a miracle and because of him I'm standing here.”
Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic gave props to Jakub Mensik after the conclusion of the Miami Open final, and said, “It hurts me to admit it but you were better. I wish you the best of luck. Maybe you'll let me win one of the next times we play.”
