Rinderknech stuns Zverev as De Minaur, Medvedev advance

World number three Alexander Zverev said he was playing “terrible tennis” after he was knocked out of the Shanghai Masters by France's Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 on Monday.

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His exit leaves Novak Djokovic as the tournament’s top-ranked player, increasing the 38-year-old Serb’s chances of winning a record-extending fifth title in the Chinese financial hub.

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

It is the second time the Frenchman has beaten him, after bundling him out of Wimbledon earlier this year.

A despondent Zverev told reporters the match had been “nothing unusual for me, unfortunately, these days”.

"Just no confidence, no belief in the shots... My year has been terrible, I'm just playing terrible tennis all round,” he said, visibly emotional.

The German had injured his big toe towards the end of his last match in Shanghai but on Monday showed 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 composure and broke in the fourth game.

“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.