Jan-Lennard Struff got one of the best wins of his career, beating Novak Djokovic in a three-set contest on Thursday in Basel. The German stunned the veteran 6-7(4), 7-5, 7-6(5) in two hours and 36 minutes to reach the Swiss Indoors Basel quarter-finals.
Earlier, the Serbian had beaten Struff on eight occasions and this was German’s maiden win against the experienced campaigner.
“I knew I needed to go for it. There was only one way to play it. So, I was very, very happy,” Struff said in his on-court interview. “The last serve went in the corner like many balls today. I knew I had to play my best tennis to have a chance. Last eight times he beat me very, very easily. So, very, very happy and pleased with the performance.”
Struff smashed 27 aces, including one down the T on match point as he was brilliant on his serve.
This loss is a big blow to Djokovic’s hopes of qualifying for the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin. Djokovic is tied with Roger Federer for the most qualifications in Nitto ATP Finals history with 18.
On the other hand, Swiss wild card Jerome Kym stunned top seed Ben Shelton 6-3, 6-7(4), 7-6(1). With this win, Kym became the first Swiss man to earn a Top 10 win since Stan Wawrinka defeated then-No. 7 Andrey Rublev in Stockholm in 2024.
“[It was] really difficult. He is No. 4 in the world,” Kym said after upsetting Shelton. “Just tried to play my best to get some chances to create something on the court. And I think I did very well.”
Kym will next face Jiri Lehecka in the next round.
