Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic progressed to the US Open third round on Wednesday after fellow countryman Laslo Djere retired early in the third set. Djokovic, the second seed, was leading 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 when the match was called off under the roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“It’s not the outcome we want, nor what the crowd expects, to see a match end this way,” Djokovic commented. “But he clearly had an injury that had kept him off the Tour for some time, and he’s struggling to regain his physical form at this level. He’s a strong player, especially in these conditions. Honestly, he deserved to win the second set. He was up 4-2 with 15/40.
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“Overall, it was a tough battle, lasting over two hours for just two sets. My serve was terrible. Without a good serve, you have to grind, run a lot, and rely heavily on your baseline game.”
Defending champion next faces Popyrin in their third major meeting this year
Djere had two break points at 4-2 in the second set, which could have given him the chance to serve for the set if he had converted them. However, the 29-year-old didn’t win another game afterward. He called for a medical timeout before serving at 4-5 and received treatment for his abdominal area.
Djokovic landed only 47 percent of his first serves, the same percentage as in his first-round match against Radu Albot. After securing the first set by breaking Djere to love at 5-4, Djokovic called for the physio and took a tablet, though he didn’t request a medical timeout. Both players were visibly struggling to catch their breath at times due to the lengthy rallies in the humid conditions.
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During the two-hour and 16-minute match, Djokovic made 26 unforced errors and converted four of his 10 break opportunities. By advancing, Djokovic became the first male player to achieve 90 wins at all four Grand Slam tournaments. He is now eight victories away from tying Jimmy Connors for the most US Open match wins.
This marked Djokovic’s second straight year facing Djere at Flushing Meadows. Last year, Djokovic rallied from two sets down against Djere before going on to win the title, with Djere being the only player to take a set off him.
Next, the defending champion will face Alexei Popyrin, whom he has defeated in four sets at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year. Djokovic leads their Lexus ATP Head2Head series 3-0. Popyrin, the Montreal champion, advanced by beating Pedro Martinez 6-2, 6-4, 6-0.
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Chasing his 25th major title and 100th tour-level win, Djokovic, who is 31-7 this season, aims for a fifth US Open title, which would break his tie with Margaret Court for the most Grand Slam singles titles.