Novak Djokovic, who described his performance as “rusty,” believes that his dominant victory over China’s Zhang Zhizhen was the perfect start to his summer season. He is confident that he will improve even more before the Australian Open begins.
On Sunday night, Djokovic easily defeated Zhang in a 72-minute match, giving Serbia a 1-0 lead against China in the United Cup tie held in Perth. In the women’s singles, world No 15 Qinwen Zheng evened the score at 1-1 with a 6-4, 6-2 victory over world No 119 Olga Danilović. In the mixed doubles, Djokovic and Danilović joined forces and ultimately won with a score of 6-4, 1-6, 10-6 (match tiebreak), securing a 2-1 victory just moments before midnight.
If Serbia manages to defeat the Czech Republic on Tuesday, they will secure a spot in the quarter-finals.
Zhang initially posed a challenge in the singles match on Sunday night at RAC Arena, utilizing his strong serving to keep Djokovic at bay. However, in the second set, Djokovic’s dominant performance caused Zhang to struggle. Djokovic’s quick footwork and strong shots wore down Zhang, allowing the 24-time grand slam winner to quickly take a 4-0 lead and secure the win.
“I struggled a bit in the beginning. I was not in sync and had trouble finding my rhythm for the first five or six games,” Djokovic explained. “This is to be expected when you haven’t played a competitive match in over a month. It takes some time to get back into the swing of things. My opponent was serving strongly and didn’t have much to lose. But when I managed to break his serve at 3-2 in the first set, I felt the momentum shift in my favor.”
Novak Djokovic, who hopes to secure his 11th victory at the upcoming Australian Open, is content with his current level of physical fitness. He stated, “I am still working on building my body and improving my form for Melbourne.” Djokovic emphasized that he aims to be in top shape for the Australian Open and is pleased with his performance during the opening week. He looks forward to continuing to progress and move towards his goal.
Djokovic explained that his determination to succeed and his willingness to set ambitious goals are key factors in propelling him to unprecedented levels of success. He acknowledged that this mentality has been developed over time and may be perceived as unrealistic or conceited by some.
I have always had a strong belief in myself. I am confident in my abilities as a well-rounded player. When I am in top form, I have the potential to win any grand slam or tournament. This is not a secret and I am not afraid to admit it. My goal is to break more records and make history in the game, which serves as my motivation.
Djokovic has appeared at four Olympic Games, with his best result a bronze medal in 2008, and the lure of Olympic glory at this year’s Paris Games is something he craves.
“I am hoping to win another medal for Serbia at the Olympics. It would mean a lot to me,” he stated. “This is one of my top goals for the year. Throughout my career, I have been in this position many times and I am familiar with what I need to do to keep my body, mind, and spirit in the best possible condition to break records and surpass my limits.”
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Australia’s chances of advancing to the quarter-finals rely on their upcoming match against the current champions, the USA. This follows the American team’s 2-1 win against Great Britain. In the match on Sunday, Great Britain initially took the lead when Katie Boulter defeated world No 5 Jessica Pegula with a score of 5-7, 6-4, 6-4.
On Monday evening, Taylor Fritz, ranked number 10 in the world, balanced out the score for the American team by defeating Cameron Norrie 7-6 (7-5), 6-4. Fritz and Pegula also secured a win for the Americans in the mixed doubles, with a 1-6, 7-6, 10-7 (match tiebreak) victory over Boulter and Neal Skupski.
After losing 2-1 to Britain in the tournament’s first round, Australia needs to win 3-0 against the US on Monday to secure a spot in the quarter-finals. If they win 2-1, the team’s advancement will be determined by the number of sets won in matches against the other two teams. However, if they lose, Australia will not move on to the next round.
