Davidovich Fokina Stuns Jodar in Comeback to Claim Shanghai Masters Crown

A comeback written in five acts

SHANGHAI — For a set and a half on Sunday, the Rolex Shanghai Masters final looked like the coronation of Spain's newest star. Then Alejandro Davidovich Fokina did what he has done all fortnight: refused to lose.

After dropping the first set 6-1 in under half an hour, the 25th-seeded Davidovich Fokina clawed back from a break down in the second, edged a tense tiebreak, and wore down an ailing Rafael Jodar 1-6, 7-6 (5), 6-4 in two hours and 27 minutes at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena to capture the first Masters 1000 title of his career — the biggest trophy he has ever lifted.

It is his third title of 2026 and the third of his career, following ATP 250 triumphs on the grass of Mallorca in June and in Chengdu last month. The win also extends his winning streak in China to ten matches.

"I don't have any words right now," the 27-year-old said afterward, clutching the trophy tightly before kissing it. "I have a blank mind. I don't know what to say and I don't know how I feel. Just a huge relief."

Jodar's blistering start

The first meeting between the two Spaniards began as a one-man show. Rafael Jodar, the 20-year-old who was ranked outside the world's top 900 a little more than a year ago and had beaten former Shanghai champion Daniil Medvedev in Saturday's semifinal, played close to flawless tennis.

He broke for a 2-0 lead and again for 5-1, winning more than half the points on Davidovich Fokina's serve while committing just three unforced errors. The opening set vanished in 27 minutes, and the youngest finalist in Shanghai Masters history looked set for a second career title in his first full season on tour.

"After the first set I had to keep trying, keep pushing," Davidovich Fokina said. "In the tiebreak, I believed in myself again."

The point that changed the match

Davidovich Fokina, a player who had lost the first five finals of his career — including the Monte Carlo Masters in 2022 — has made a habit of comebacks in Shanghai. He saved a match point in the third round against Frances Tiafoe and rallied from a set down against Alexander Zverev in the semifinal, and he drew on both memories.

Down a break in the second set, he broke back to 3-3 with the point of the match: retrieving a drop shot with an off-balance backhand pass down the line, then falling onto his back and spreading his arms out in celebration. He then saved break points in three successive service games before holding his nerve in the tiebreak, 7-5, to level the match.

Young legs give out

The decider turned on fitness. Jodar, who had come from a set down in four of his Shanghai matches, began to fade after a draining week. He called for the trainer at 4-3 in the third set and had a massage on his right thigh; in the next game he grimaced and clutched his left foot after slightly twisting it racing to the net, then took another massage on his left thigh at the changeover.

"In the third set, maybe I had a bit more fitness physically," Davidovich Fokina said. "He's an amazing player and it was very tough to play against him."

Davidovich Fokina broke the 12th-seeded Jodar twice in the final set and sealed victory on his second championship point, when Jodar could not return his serve. To his credit, Jodar kept fighting to the end — and kept it in perspective.

"I just tried to enjoy the moment," Jodar said. "I gave everything, but it wasn't meant to be today."

What the title means

The rankings tell the story of the fortnight. Davidovich Fokina, who reached a career-high ranking of 14th in November last year, is projected to return to the top 20 and set a new career high of world No. 13 when the new rankings are released on Monday. Jodar, meanwhile, is set to climb into the world's top 15, around No. 11, strengthening his bid to qualify for the ATP Finals in Turin.

More than the numbers, though, the title ends a narrative that has followed Davidovich Fokina for years: the gifted shotmaker who could not win finals. Five defeats in finals, including that Monte Carlo heartbreak four years ago, now read as prologue.

Davidovich Fokina said during the trophy ceremony: "This is going to be a memory for the rest of my life." He also commended his young opponent: "You are 20 years old but man, you have a future. And you're gonna be here many times."

The road ahead

For Jodar, the pain of defeat will fade faster than the evidence of the week: a first Masters 1000 final, a semifinal win over Medvedev, and a style of front-foot tennis that looks built for the sport's biggest stages. For Spanish tennis, the all-Spanish final was another sign of a production line that keeps delivering.

Davidovich Fokina leaves China with the Asian swing's signature trophy. After a season in which he has now won three titles — and after surviving match points, semifinal comebacks and a younger countryman's brilliance — he returns to the top of the game exactly where his tennis has long suggested he belongs.