Spanish player Alejandro Davidovich Fokina bounced back from a set and a break down to complete an epic week in Shanghai, toppling countryman Rafael Jodar for his maiden Masters 1000 title on Sunday.
The all-Spanish showdown saw world No. 24 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina edge 12th seed Rafael Jodar 1-6, 7-6(5), 6-4 in two hours and 28 minutes at the Qizhong Forest Sports City Arena.
As a result, he became the first Spanish player to win the Rolex Shanghai Masters, his biggest career title.
After achieving the feat, the 27-year-old outlined: "I don’t know what to say, and I don’t know how I feel. Just a huge relief."
"After the first set, I had to keep trying, keep pushing, like every match in the tournament. In the tiebreak, I believed in myself again and tried to play the ball. He was playing huge tennis.
“In the third set, maybe I had a bit more fitness physically. He’s an amazing player, and it was very tough to play against him today.”
He finished with 17 winners against 40 unforced errors compared to Jodar's 38 and 45, respectively.
In addition, the three-time ATP title holder converted three of seven break points and won 64 percent of the points on his first serve.
On Saturday, the 25th seed pulled off an emphatic upset, 5-7, 6-4, 6-3, over world No. 2 Alexander Zverev, securing his spot in the championship match.
In the quarterfinals, Frenchman Arthur Gea retired due to injury when the Spaniard was leading 4-1 in the first set.
From the early stages, the path to the final became a test of Davidovich Fokina's fitness and resilience who returned to tour-level competition last September, winning the title in Chengdu.
During the trophy ceremony, he commented: “I am very grateful for the team I have. They’ve supported me every day for many years, and of course, this year was a tough one. Not only two months out. I also skipped a couple more tournaments this year with [other] injuries. So it was not an easy one… I cannot describe with words how thankful I am [for my team]."
The Malaga native spent two months away from the tour with a back injury, returning as if he had never left.
For the second time in as many weeks, he defeated in-form Hubert Hurkacz in the fourth round, rallying from a set down to take victory after a gruelling third-set tiebreak.
Previously, he fought hard to survive seventh seed Frances Tiafoe, saving a match point before sealing a dramatic 7–6(4), 4–6, 7–6(6) victory.
As for Jodar, the 20-year-old enjoyed a dream week in Shanghai, beating fifth seed Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 6-4 to reach his first Masters 1000 final on Chinese soil.
Assessing his run, the rising star said: “It was a great week. I played a lot of matches.
“A lot of things to improve for the next tournament. I didn't get the win today, but [I’m] still happy about how things are going for me."
The youngest player ever to reach the Shanghai final is projected to achieve a new career-high world No. 11 on Monday, continuing to shine brightly in his breakout season.