Novak Djokovic, the second seed, progressed to the third round of the US Open on Wednesday after his fellow Serbian, Laslo Djere, retired early in the third set. Djokovic was leading 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 under the roof of Arthur Ashe Stadium when Djere had to withdraw from the match.
Djokovic expressed his disappointment with the situation, stating, "It’s not the outcome we wanted, and certainly not what the crowd came to see—a walkover." He acknowledged Djere's struggles with a previous injury that had sidelined him from the Tour for a while. "He’s a great player, especially in these conditions. Honestly, he deserved to win the second set. It was 4-2, 15/40," Djokovic added.
A Tough Battle
The match was a tough contest, lasting over two hours for just two sets. Djokovic admitted to struggling with his serve, saying, "I served terribly. So, without a strong serve, you have to grind and rely on your baseline game."
Djere had two break points at 4-2 in the second set, which could have allowed him to serve for the set, but he couldn't capitalize on them. After that, he didn’t win another game. He called for a medical timeout before serving at 4-5 and received treatment for an abdominal issue.
Djokovic's serving woes continued, making only 47% of his first serves, similar to his performance in the first round against Radu Albot. He managed to close the opening set by breaking Djere's serve to love at 5-4. Although Djokovic needed attention from the physio and took a tablet, he didn’t call for a medical timeout. Both players were visibly exhausted at times, struggling with the humid conditions during long rallies.
Throughout the two-hour-and-16-minute match, Djokovic committed 26 unforced errors but managed to convert four out of his ten break opportunities.
By advancing to the next round, Djokovic became the first male player to achieve 90 wins at all four major tournaments. He is now just eight wins away from tying Jimmy Connors for the most US Open match victories.
Next Opponent: Alexei Popyrin
Djokovic's next challenge will be against Alexei Popyrin, a player he has already defeated at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year, each time in four sets. Djokovic will aim for his third victory against Popyrin in this year’s majors, looking to extend his Lexus ATP Head2Head series lead to 4-0. Popyrin, who recently won the Montreal title, advanced to the third round by defeating Pedro Martinez 6-2, 6-4, 6-0.
Chasing History
With a season record of 31-7, Djokovic is in pursuit of his 25th major title and 100th tour-level championship. If he wins his fifth US Open title, Djokovic would surpass Australia's Margaret Court to hold the record for the most Grand Slam singles titles, male or female.
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