Novak Djokovic of Serbia defeated Germany's Alexander Zverev in the men's singles quarter-final at the China Open in Beijing on October 4, 2026, winning 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. This victory marks Djokovic's 32nd consecutive win at the China Open, breaking Rafael Nadal's record for the longest unbeaten streak at a single tour-level tournament in the Open Era. Djokovic, who is 39 years old, has never lost a match at this tournament, surpassing Nadal's previous record of 31 straight wins at Roland Garros.
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Zverev, the reigning champion of both the French Open and U.S. Open, began strongly by taking the first set 6-4. However, Djokovic rallied back, breaking Zverev's serve at 5-4 in the second set and then serving out to level the match. In the deciding set, Djokovic secured another crucial break at 5-4, eventually closing the match after two hours and 35 minutes. He now advances to face third-seeded Daniil Medvedev, who triumphed over Francisco Cerundolo with a score of 7-6 (7-4), 6-3.
In the women's tournament, second seed Aryna Sabalenka faced an upset in the third round, losing to Czech 26th seed Nikola Bartunkova 6-4, 6-3. Bartunkova's victory is significant as it represents the biggest win of her career, taking place in one hour and 35 minutes. This defeat followed another shock as newly crowned world No. 1 Elena Rybakina was eliminated by 118th-ranked Alina Charaeva, who came back after losing the first set to win 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. These outcomes mean that neither of the top two women's seeds advanced to the round of 16 for the first time since 2015.