Novak Djokovic was forced to dig deep as he battled past Alexei Popyrin 6-3 4-6 7-6 (7-4) 6-3 to reach the third round of the Australian Open.
Djokovic appeared to have a problem with his wrist, an issue he came into the tournament with, and has also been ill but he kept his winning streak at the Australian Open alive, having not lost in Melbourne since 2018.
He will face Tomas Martin Etcheverry in the last 32 after the Argentine, who beat Andy Murray in the first round, overcame Gael Monfils with a 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory.
“I haven’t been playing my best and I’m still trying to find my form, but particularly in the early rounds you’re playing players with nothing to lose really,” said Djokovic.
“They come out on Centre Court, trying to play their best match and best tennis, and I think both my first and second-round opponents are really great quality tennis players.
“I managed to find a way to win in four, that’s what counts in the end, and hopefully I can be able to build as the tournament progresses.”
The opening seven games went to serve with Djokovic 4-3 up but the world No 1 made a breakthrough when he broke Popyrin as the Australian made unforced errors at the wrong moment.
Djokovic went on to take the set but Popyrin raised his game in response and broke his opponent to go 3-1 up in the second set.
However, Djokovic broke back when Popyrin was serving for the set, only for the Australian to win the set on the Djokovic serve and level things up to the delight of the crowd on the Rod Laver Arena.
Alexei Popyrin gave Novak Djokovic a scare but his third set tie-break defeat proved costly
Some unforced errors were creeping into Djokovic’s game and he was particularly struggling on the forehand, which continued in the third set.
Popyrin required a medical time-out at 3-2 up on his left calf but it didn’t seem to affect him. The home player found himself with three set points on Djokovic’s serve at 5-4 but failed to take them, then missed a fourth opportunity in the same game as the Serb just held on to make it 5-5.
A third-set tie-break was needed and from nowhere Djokovic delivered his best tennis of the match with some outstanding shots. Just as he’s done over the last 15 years, when it matters most, he produces.
Novak Djokovic will play Tomas Martin Etcheverry on Saturday
Djokovic was left displeased early in the fourth set after a comment from a spectator, and there were some words exchanged.
It seemed to fire him up because he broke Popyrin in the sixth game. Djokovic had three match points at 5-2 up on his opponent’s serve but a determined Popyrin fought back to force the 23-time major winner to serve it out for the match.
Djokovic, who is bidding for a record-extending 11th Australian Open title, did so with no issues and secured a place in the last 32.
Tsitsipas fights into third round
Stefanos Tsitsipas will face Luca Van Assche in the third round
Stefanos Tsitsipas was forced to work hard in a gruelling 6-4 6-7 (6-8) 6-2 7-6 (7-4) against Australian Jordan Thompson.
Tsitsipas crucially won the second set tie-break despite squandering 4-1 and 6-3 leads before eventually winning it 8-6.
The Greek player raced through the third set then missed two match points at 5-4 up in the fourth. Thompson wasted four set points to send the match to a decider at 6-5 ahead, so another tie-break was required which Tsitsipas came out on top in 7-4.
“There came a moment where things weren’t looking at my favour. There started to be a slight shift in the momentum, especially after that break when I was serving for the match,” said Tsitsipas.
“This really doesn’t happen very often. I haven’t had a lot of times in my career where I wasn’t able to close the match, especially when I was serving for it.
Stefanos Tsitsipas feels he needs to close out matches better in the future
“For me the challenge there was to not break down. I feel like it would be easy to be the guy that becomes a victim of that. But I refused that to myself because I know deep inside that I’m way better than that, and I can handle situations, difficult situations, because of my past and the things that I went through.
“This might seem a mountain to a lot of people, but we’re back in equal play. I really executed my game plan tremendously and at the highest peak on the tie-break.
“I was able to keep it going on a very nice flow for me, especially when I got the early mini break in the tie-break. I really felt that inner power come out. It really showed in the next few points.”
Sinner and De Minaur also win
Fourth seed Jannik Sinner had a straightforward 6-2 6-2 6-2 victory over Jesper De Jong as he continued to impress in Melbourne.
Sinner is one of the favourites for the men’s singles title after winning his first Masters event at the Canadian Open last year and leading Italy to Davis Cup glory in November.
“For sure I can improve. I played quite well. I felt good on the court. I was very calm and stable throughout the whole match,” said De Jong.
“We have to see how I go when the match is closer, when the sets are closer, trying to see how I react.”
Jannik Sinner is one of the favourites for the men’s singles title
Alex de Minaur has been in good form this month and took a comfortable 6-3 6-0 6-3 win over Italian Matteo Arnaldi.
De Minaur, who got the better of Djokovic, Alexander Zverev and Taylor Fritz at the United Cup team event, was made to work in the first set by Arnaldi and twice had to save breakpoints to preserve his early lead.
However, he went on to seal the win and will play another Italian, Flavio Cobolli on Saturday.
“I feel in a good position where maybe I know if I don’t bring my A-game, I’ve still got plenty to show. I’ve won enough matches this year to kind of know how to win certain types of matches,” said De Minaur.
Alex de Minaur is Australia’s biggest hope to go deep into the tournament in Melbourne
“I think so far I have done what I needed to do to win the matches. It hasn’t been probably the prettiest of levels or my best level.
“I played two opponents where maybe I haven’t been allowed to be as aggressive as I would like, because, you know, they’ve got a lot of firepower. But I do think I’ve got a lot more to show.”
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