Zverev dumped out of Shanghai Masters by France’s Rinderknech

SHANGHAI: World No. 3 Alexander Zverev was knocked out of the Shanghai Masters by France’s Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Monday, leaving Novak Djokovic as the tournament’s top-ranked player.

In stifling conditions, the 54th-ranked Frenchman came back from a set down to stun an increasingly rattled Zverev into submission.

The German had injured his big toe toward the end of his last match in Shanghai but on Monday seemed to show no sign of discomfort as he broke Rinderknech in the third game with a forehand.

He nearly went ahead early in the second set, but Rinderknech recovered his cool, piling on the pressure in the fourth game to eventually break.

“I’m not very sure (how I managed to turn the game around),” he said.

“I fought like hell, tried everything. (Zverev) is such a good player ... I knew it was going to be a battle.

“Starting in the second set ... I was able to be offensive at the right moment, in a smarter way,” he said.

Keeping up the momentum, in the third set the 30-year-old broke in the third game.

Zverev had to pause to change his shoes because sweat was pouring out of them, as spectators wafted fans and wore cool packs on their foreheads to counter the suffocating humidity.

But switching footwear was not enough to save the German, and a double fault in the seventh game led to Rinderknech breaking again.

Holding with an ace to win, the Frenchman lolled his body in delighted disbelief, then danced around the court in glee.

Zverev’s exit means world No. 5 Djokovic, who is aiming for a record-extending fifth title in the Chinese financial hub, now leads rankings-wise as the tournament heads into the last 16.

On Sunday the competition lost both defending champion Jannik Sinner, who was