Pushed to the limit, Djokovic finds a way to win in Rome
Rome, September 18
Novak Djokovic was being pushed so hard in the first set by Filip Krajinovic that he urgently needed somewhere to sit down and catch his breath.
Since it was 5-5 and not time for a changeover, he plopped down on one of the new boxes installed behind the court for players’ towel — which are there because ball kids are no longer providing towel service amid the coronavirus pandemic.
It would take Djokovic quite a bit more work before he finally closed out the first set in 1 hour, 28 minutes and went on to finish off a 7-6(7) 6-3 victory for a spot in the quarterfinals for the 14th straight year.
“It was a great battle,” said Djokovic, who is playing his first tournament since being defaulted from the US Open.
“Definitely one of the longest sets I’ve ever played. We went toe to toe. It could have gone a different way.”
With the temperature on Campo Centrale soaring to 32 degrees Celsius, Djokovic said that “we both struggled physically in that first set”.
The set was so close that both players won the same exact number of points — 61 — and Djokovic didn’t close it out until his fifth set point when Krajinovic’s forehand sailed long.
Shadows moved across the court in the second set.
“That allowed us to feel better,” said Djokovic.
“But I’m very pleased with this first set. There were some very long rallies. This is what clay tennis is all about.”
Djokovic, a four-time Rome champion, will next play one of two qualifiers, either 18-year-old Italian Lorenzo Musetti or Dominik Koepfer.
Later, nine-time Rome champion Rafael Nadal was playing Dusan Lajovic for a spot in the last eight. AP
