Rome Novak Djokovic entered the third round of the Masters 1000 event in Italy after defeating Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-6(5), 6-2 on the evening of May 12.
Djokovic was still wearing an elbow brace for his right hand as he entered the second round against his top 60 opponent. The top seed struggled in the first set as Etcheverry served well and moved flexibly. The Argentine won the first service game of the match, taking a 3-1 lead.
Djokovic has not reached an ATP final since the Australian Open in early January. Photo: ATP
Djokovic adjusted his play in the second half of the first set, using more net sweeps and drop shots. He regained his balance when he took advantage of a break point in game six to tie the match at 3-3. The Serb then missed two set points in game 10, when he was leading 5-4 and stood to return the ball. Etcheverry pulled Djokovic into a tiebreak, leading 3-0 in the series but lost 5-7.
The second set was easier for Djokovic as he held his serve games and successfully converted two break-points to close out the match 6-2 after 37 minutes in this set.
Djokovic admitted that he was not in the form he wanted. He said: "It's difficult to face a clay court specialist like Etcheverry. It took me a long time to find my rhythm. I'm only satisfied with the last games."
Etcheverry, who is 6ft 4in, has been keeping track of Djokovic’s ATP rankings to compare himself to them. He started doing this when he first started scoring on the ATP, when Djokovic was at the top of the rankings with 12,900 points. Etcheverry is now in the world’s top 100, with 826 points – nearly 6,000 fewer than Djokovic.
Djokovic will face Grigor Dimitrov in the third round. He has a 65-10 record in Rome and has never been eliminated before the quarterfinals. Djokovic is aiming for a seventh title in the Italian capital and a record 39 Masters 1000 titles.
Vy Anh
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