By winning his first title, Mensik denies Djokovic No 100

MIAMI GARDENS, Florida — Novak Djokovic faced a series of obstacles Sunday in the Miami Open final: a delay of more than five-and-a-half hours, an eye infection and a slippery court due to high levels of humidity following the rain.

But, the largest roadblock was the youth and power of 1.9-meter, 19-year-old phenom Jakub Mensik, who outdueled the 37-year-old Serbian 7-6 (4), 7-6 (4) to win his first ATP title.

Ranked 54th entering the tournament, the Czech teenager plowed through Djokovic with poise — and a stellar 209 km/h serve. He collected 14 aces and got broken only once. Mensik bashed a service winner on match point and fell on his back.

"You're the one I idolized when I was young," Mensik said to Djokovic during the ceremony after the match, which had lasted two hours, 3 minutes. "I started playing tennis because of you."

Mensik's victory spoiled the party for Djokovic, who was seeking his 100th career title, and a record seventh at the Miami Open. Djokovic will have to wait, while the teenager looks ready to join the elite.

"This is a joyous moment for him and his family — an unbelievable tournament; the first of many," Djokovic said. "It hurts me to admit it, you were better. In the clutch moments, you delivered the goods. For a young player like yourself, this is a great feature."

The crowd pulled hard for Djokovic, who hadn't played in Miami since 2019. More than three-quarters of the fans stuck around, despite the massive delay, chanting "No-vak" and calling his name during critical moments in the match.

Djokovic, far from a fan favorite here earlier in his career, saluted the fans, saying it was one of the warmest crowds he's ever experienced.

But, the 24-time Grand Slam winner seemed compromised by his eye issue, with redness visible under the eyelid.

Djokovic applied eyedrops during two changeovers in the first set. It was unclear if it affected his vision.

Afterward, Djokovic said he "really preferred not to talk about" his eye, but admitted: "I didn't feel my greatest on the court."

Djokovic called it "a weird day".

"It's the same for both players," he added. "You have to accept the circumstances. I tried to make the most out of what I had, or was facing, but, yeah, it was quite different from any other day of the tournament for me."

During the set, he also slipped twice on the court. The humidity reached 90 percent after hours of rain disrupted the card. Sweating profusely, Djokovic asked the umpire for a bucket of sawdust to improve his grip.

Mensik had lost to Djokovic in a three-setter last October at the Shanghai Masters, but the youngster said before the match he had played too nervously.

Mensik was playing his first ATP 1000 final. He was not quite two years old when Djokovic won his first Miami Open title in 2007.

Djokovic knew Mensik's potential after inviting him to his camp in Belgrade to train when the prodigy was just 16.

"He has the complete game. His serve is incredible, powerful, precise," Djokovic said.

There was more fearlessness this time than in Shanghai. Mensik went 3-0 up with an early break, but Djokovic broke back at 4-3, then held for 4-4 with fans chanting his name.

Mensik held for a 6-5 lead in a game that saw Djokovic take a tumble in the doubles alley chasing a drop shot. Mensik served it out with his seventh ace.

In the first-set tiebreak, Mensik charged ahead 5-0.

He executed a leaping backhand volley winner, and Djokovic muffed a routine forehand drop shot into the net to fall behind 5-0. On set point, Mensik slugged an overhead smash for a winner.

The match was scheduled for 3 pm, but the players didn't take the court until 8:37 pm due to rain and organizers deciding to complete the women's doubles final first.

The South Florida rain began at 12:50 pm during that match, which pitted Russians Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider against Spanish-Japanese pairing Cristina Bucsa and Miyu Kato, with the latter duo trailing 3-0 in the first set.

The women returned to the court at 5:30 pm after the rain stopped, and the courts were readied by court-drying machinery. But, minutes later, before the warm-up, the rain returned and the umbrella-toting players left the court once again.

Agencies via Xinhua