Sep 6, 2025; Flushing, NY, USA; Aryna Sabalenka speaks to the crows after winning the women's singles final against Amanda Anisimova (USA) (not pictured) of the 2025 US Open tennis championships at Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

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‘If Novak Djokovic Wins the Title, It Will Be Thanks to Me’ – Aryna Sabalenka Makes Cheeky Claim On ATP Shanghai Masters 2025

Djokovic and Sabalenka are into the SFs at Shanghai & Wuhan.

World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka has made a hilarious declaration about taking the credit on behalf of Novak Djokovic at the 2025 Rolex Shanghai Masters. The 24-time Grand Slam champion is bidding for a record-extending fifth title at the Masters-1000 event in China this week. According to Sabalenka, her training sessions with the Serbian will play a big role in his potential success.

Sabalenka and Djokovic are both semifinalists in their respective tournaments. The 27-year-old Belarusian dominator defeated Rebecca Sramkova, Liudmila Samsonova and Elena Rybakina to reach the final four in Wuhan. It is a competition where Sabalenka has a 20-match unbeaten run. Meanwhile, Djokovic has survived the harsh conditions in Shanghai to reach the semifinals. He is facing qualifier Valentin Vacherot for a spot in Sunday’s summit clash.

HISTORY. AGAIN. 💯@DjokerNole wins his 100th ATP title in Geneva!!#GonetGenevaOpen pic.twitter.com/so4NW0aKLc
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) May 24, 2025

It has been a season filled with ups and downs thus far for Novak Djokovic. After reaching the semifinals at the Australian Open, the 38-year-old went through a lean patch. Barring a runner-up finish at the Miami Open, he went through five tournaments without winning a match. Djokovic then captured the elusive 100th tour-level title of his career at Geneva. Choosing to prioritize the majors, the World No. 5 reached the semifinal stage at all of them in 2025.

Aryna Sabalenka Makes Hilarious Comments on Novak Djokovic’s Potential Shanghai Masters 2025 Title Charge

The friendship between Aryna Sabalenka and Novak Djokovic has grown leaps and bounds over the years. They have flooded social media with their training sessions and photos on and off the court. Alongside respective partners Georgios Frangulis and Jelena Djokovic, the duo has been captured dining out on several occasions. More than anything, they share immense respect and a friendly connection with one another.

Aryna Sabalenka is taking the credit if Novak Djokovic becomes a five-time champion in Shanghai 😅

The pair practised together in Greece prior to the Asian swing 🤝 pic.twitter.com/nPUhaLYl5V
— TNT Sports (@tntsports) October 10, 2025

At the Wuhan Open 2025 press conference, Sabalenka was asked about Djokovic’s quest for a fifth championship in Shanghai. “I like spending time with Novak – he is always willing to give good advice,” said the four-time Grand Slam champion. Djokovic has beaten the likes of Marin Cilic and Zizou Bergs en route to the Shanghai semis. “We trained several times, and he was great on court. He knows how to joke, and when we trained, he celebrated almost every point in his own way.”

She continued, “I hope I was a good training partner. After all, when I see his matches and results in Shanghai, I can say with total certainty that I am. If he wins the title, it will be thanks to me.” Whether or not Djokovic and Sabalenka can succeed in Shanghai and Wuhan respectively, remains to be seen.

(Image Credits: Mike Frey, Imagn Images)

Aryna Sabalenka

ATP

Novak Djokovic

Shanghai Masters 2025

Tennis

WTA

Wuhan Open 2025

Sankalp Harikrishnan

A passionate sports fan through and through, I am currently pursuing my MA in Global Sports Journalism. I specialise in tennis and football writing at The Playoffs News, and I have prior experience working at EssentiallySports and Sportskeeda. Born and raised in Bengaluru, India, sport was my safe space right from my childhood. After trying my hand at multiple sports and representing my educational institutions in cricket, badminton and table tennis, I found sports media to be my calling.