On the US Open fourth day of main draw action, four-time champion Novak Djokovic was pushed by American qualifier Zachary Svajda to four sets, opening play in Arthur Ashe Stadium in style.
The Serbian rallied from a set down to secure a 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3, 6-1win after two hours and 31 minutes, advancing to the third round at the major.
“I wasn’t really happy with my tennis in the first part of the match,” he outlined in his on-court interview. “That’s also a credit to Zach for playing some really high-quality tennis. It’s unfortunate that he obviously struggled with an injury toward the end of the second. Kudos to him for staying on the court.”
Chasing a record extending 25th Grand Slam, the former world No. 1 found in the American qualifier a highly competitive opponent who forced him to dig deep on Wednesday afternoon in Flushing Meadows.
The Belgrade native struggled to settle into the contest as Svajda went toe-to-toe, showcasing great foot speed, a solid serve, and a powerful forehand.
The world. No. 145 came out rallying, hitting groundstrokes into Djokovic’s backhand, pushing the seventh seed to play physical points in lengthy exchanges, taking the better of his adversary.
Then, the 24-time major winner played with aggression to escape danger, coming back from 4-5, 0-30 down on his own serve to hold his ground at 5-5, keeping the score tight as neither player could break the other’s serve.
Despite committing his first double fault, the 22-year-old from California remained untroubled by his rival on serve and stepped ahead 6-5.
Then, Djokovic sent the first set into a tiebreak, which the young American notched 7-6(5) in 62 minutes.
The world No. 7 fired 12 winners to Svajda’s 11, against 14 unforced errors to 8, respectively.
Svajda continued to display a high level of tennis, but the 38-year-old lifted his game substantially in the second set.
And in the sixth game, he found breathing room to convert the first break point of the match, backing it up to inch ahead 5-2 while his rival dropped intensity toward the end of the set.
The 100-time ATP titlist served out for the set 6-2, setting the encounter even at one set apiece, courtesy of a rock-solid performance behind his serve, winning 92 percent of the points on his first delivery.
Svajda received a brief visit from the trainer ahead of the third set, pointing to a leg issue.
He was not moving as fast as in the previous set, but relying on his forehand, he managed to stay the course.
In the changeover, with his opponent leading 2-1 in the third set, the trainer returned, massaging the player’s legs, which seemed to be a cramp issue.
As action resumed, the Olympic gold medalist conceded the fourth game with a double fault, but recovered by breaking straight back, narrowing the deficit to ultimately tie the score 3-3, an inflection point in the contest.
With his rival showing signs of obvious discomfort, Djokovic capitalized on his chances, converting a double break in the seventh game and holding to take a 5-3 advantage.
He closed out 6-3, sailing into a two-set-to-one lead.
From that moment on, it turned into a one-sided affair as he broke early in the second game of the fourth set to never look back, wrapping action 6-1, continuing his run in New York City.
The Geneva Open champion has yet to display his best tennis at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center if he wants to go deep into the Slam marathon.
Next, Djokovic will square off against either Brit Cameron Norrie or Argentine Francisco Comesana. At the time of writing, Norrie held a two-set advantage.