Djokovic has a new serve up his sleeve
ARMED with a new serve and a dose of cautious optimism, Novak Djokovic resurfaced in public for the first time since Wimbledon as the most interesting exhibit of the Australian Open’s walking wounded. The Serb, who will be seeded No 14 for this morning’s draw, played two exhibition tournaments yesterday. That was two more than managed by Stan Wawrinka, whose participation remained uncertain after he withdrew from the pre-Open Tiebreak Tens event, a T20-style quickfire form of the game. Djokovic has taken to wearing a sleeve on his right arm after contending with elbow issues. Yesterday in Melbourne he beat world No 5 Dominic Thiem 6-1, 6-4 in the Kooyong Classic, then lost 10-6 in a tiebreak to Lleyton Hewitt in the Tiebreak Tens. The most notable aspect of his return was that Djokovic has remodelled his serve, cutting short his takeback. ‘It’s the first match ever that I am playing with a sleeve on. I am trying to serve well, it went good today,’ he said. ‘I am trying to do everything possible to get my arm and my elbow ready for the Open.’ Laura Robson yesterday missed out on a place in the qualifying event for the Australian Open. Her ranking of 227 was not high enough to gain entry, with the cut-off set at 216.