Novak Djokovic debuted at the Australian Open in 2005, passing the qualifying stage before falling to an eventual champion, Marat Safin. Two decaded later, Novak is the seventh seed in Melbourne, seeking the 11th trophy at his beloved Major.
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Djokovic is celebrating a notable milestone Down Under, entering his 20th Australian Open. The Serb is the fourth player to achieve that in the Open era, matching Lleyton Hewitt and Feliciano Lopez and edging closer to Roger Federer.
The Swiss embraced 21 Australian Open campaigns, and Djokovic will join him at the top if he returns to Melbourne next year, which is more than likely. At 37, Novak is eager to addmore Major titles to his collection, prioritising thefour most notable tennis events.
Djokovic could have matched Federer this week and stand on 21 appearances at the first Major of the season. However, he missed the 2022 Australian Open due to deportation because of Australia's Covid-19 regulations. The veteran is off to a winning start in Melbourne.
He defeated two young guns in four sets and booked a place in the third round for the 17th time in the previous 18 trips Down Under! The 19-year-old Nishesh Basavareddy challenged the legend in the first round at Rod Laver Arena.
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Nishesh madean impressive debut at Majors and claimed the opening set before Novak stepped in and won 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in two hours and 59 minutes. The ten-time champion fired 23 aces and tamed his strokes nicely after the opener, landing 51 winners and 41 unforced errors.
He lost serve once and ended the valiant resistance of his opponent with four breaks on his tally from 11 opportunities. Basavareddy survived three challenging games in the opener and clinched a break in game seven for 6-4.
Djokovicplayed better in the second set and stole the rival's serve in the eighth game before taking it 6-3. The Serb grabbed an early break in the third set and won it 6-4 to move in front. The veteran broke the young gun two times in the fourth set to emerge at the top.
The 21-year-old qualifier Jaime Faris challenged the ten-time winner in the second round. Novak lost a set but moved through with a 6-1, 6-7, 6-3, 6-2 victory in three hours. The 24-time Major winner got broken two times and lost a tight second set.
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He pushed strong on the return in the three sets he won, providing seven breaks and entering the last 32.