Valentin Vacherot produced possibly the most shocking run in tennis history to win the Shanghai Masters on Sunday.
The Monegasque star became the lowest-ranked winner of an ATP Masters 1000 title after sealing the title against his cousin, Arthur Rinderknech.
Vacherot’s path to the title was arduous: he defeated Tallon Griekspoor, Holger Rune and Novak Djokovic before defeating Rinderknech.
As a result, Vacherot became just the third qualifier to win a Masters 1000 title since 1990.
Defeating Djokovic marked Vacherot’s greatest victory over a higher-ranked player, and the pair shared a moment after their contest.
Djokovic told Vacherot his level was ‘extraordinary’
After Vacherot’s 6-3, 6-4 victory over Djokovic, the pair exchanged a few words at the net, which have been relayed by the Monegasque player.
“I thought to myself, ‘It’s not up to me to talk’, I have to let him talk,'” Vacherot said to Eurosport France.
“He is the most successful player in the history of tennis. Our handshake was sublime.
“He tells me that my victory is totally deserved, that my level was extraordinary. He tells me good luck for the final and to continue like this.
“I listened with my ears like a little tennis fan.”
Djokovic struggled with an injury in the first set of his match, an injury that warranted the use of a medical timeout.
However, Djokovic rallied in the second set, leading 4-3, before Vacherot closed out the contest.
Vacherot’s unusual points total in Shanghai
When a player wins a Masters 1000 title, they customarily gain 1000 ATP points.
However, Vacherot gained more than 1000 ATP points after winning the Shanghai Masters title.
This is because he won three qualifying rounds, earning him 20 ATP points before playing a main draw match.
Consequently, upon Vacherot’s victory against Rinderknech in the final, he gained a total of 1,020 ATP points.
