A year later, Novak Djokovic made a successful debut at the Australian Open tennis tournament.
Djokovic, the fourth seed, took the measure of Spaniard Roberto Carballes Baena 6-3, 6-4 and 6-0 in the first round of the first major tournament of the season on Tuesday morning.
The Serbian, holder of nine Australian Open titles, was expelled from the country last year the day before the start of the tournament due to his COVID-19 vaccination status. This time, he did not miss the appointment, and his supporters made sure to remember his presence.
“The atmosphere was incredible. Thank you all for staying despite the late hour. Furthermore, I would like to thank you for having welcomed me so well; I couldn’t have asked for a better reception, Djokovic told the crowd on the court after the match. I am very happy to be back in Australia, the very place where I had some of the greatest successes of my career. »
The posters encouraging him, the dozens of Serbian flags and the spectators chanting “Nole” seemed to transport him. Djokovic also briefly waved to the crowd with his left hand as he jumped onto the pitch around 10:30 p.m. local time. Then he immediately got to work and played at a very high level – the only jarring note was when he appeared to suffer from hamstring discomfort, which forced him to wrap his left leg.
” Serrated “
On his level of play, Djokovic said he was “on the spur of the moment” in the second set, before adding that he gave his opponent no respite in the following set. As for his hamstrings, the Serb mentioned that he was concerned before the start of the game, but after the game he came to the following conclusion: “The leg is fine. It’s not ideal, but it’s getting better.
Djokovic started the game with an ace at 201 km / h and won the first point at zero, before taking control of the first set by knowing a streak of 12 points against the 75e world racket. Djokovic finally sealed the outcome shortly after midnight local time [8 h mardi matin, heure de Montréal].
I am very happy to be back in Australia, the very place where I had some of the greatest successes of my career.
Meanwhile, at Margaret Court Arena, second-seeded Casper Ruud of Norway worked hard before taking the measure of Czech Tomas Machac, 110e in the world, 6-3, 7-6 (8), 6-7 (5) and 6-3. Ruud will now face American Jenson Brooksby.
Earlier, after 4 hours and 54 minutes, veteran Andy Murray scored an epic victory over Italy’s Matteo Berrettini in the first round of the Australian Open on Tuesday, winning 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-7 (7) and 7-6 (6).
“It’s impressive what he manages to do after so many operations, after all those kilometers of racing over the course of his career,” Berrettini said of the Scotsman. It shows his love for our sport, his love for such tough matches. »
Aged 35, Murray reached the final of the first stage of the Grand Slam in 2010, 2011, 2013, 2015 and 2016. He lost four times to Djokovic, and once to the Swiss Roger Federer.
“He’s a great champion. I say it often, mentioned Berrettini, who features in the new documentary series breakpoint, from Netflix. I loved the atmosphere during the game against him today. It was a very good game. Unfortunately, it didn’t end in my favor. »
The Briton won Wimbledon in 2013 and 2016, as well as the US Open in 2012.
Rated 66eMurray beat a top-20 player in a Grand Slam for the first time since 2017.
His next rival will be Thanasi Kokkinakis or Fabio Fognini.
It seemed unlikely that the evening program at the Rod Laver Arena would be as high as the afternoon one featuring the Murray-Berrettini duel. First there was the 7-6 (8), 4-6, 6-1 victory of the second seed, the Tunisian Ons Jabeur, against Tamara Zidansek, then the entry of Djokovic.