Djokovic prolongs Monfils domination and reign at No. 1
I would probably rate it as the best performance of the year, I would say. I felt very good on the court.
Novak Djokovic
MADRID: Top seed Novak Djokovic described his straightsets opening win over Gael Monfils in Madrid on Tuesday as his “best performance of the year”.
The 20-time major champion ensured he would keep his number one ranking for at least another week by extending his winning record against Monfils with a 6-3, 6-2 victory at the Caja Magica.
Djokovic, who entered the contest 17-0 head-to-head against the Frenchman, needed a win in their second round match to avoid surrendering the top spot to second-placed Daniil Medvedev.
“I would probably rate it as the best performance of the year, I would say. I felt very good on the court,” said Djokovic.
“I’m very pleased, considering, you know, that up to today I was not playing my best tennis in the few tournaments that I played this year and still kind of finding my rhythm, finding my groove.”
The three-time Madrid champion is finding his rhythm, after not competing much this season, but arrived to the Spanish capital fresh from a runner-up showing at his home tournament in Belgrade.
The Serb saved three break points in his first two service games before he wrested control of the match from Monfils and grabbed a one-set lead in 47 minutes.
Djokovic had to save two break points as he served for the match before he booked a last-16 showdown with Andy Murray or Canadian 14th seed Denis Shapovalov.
Sixth seed Andrey Rublev survived a difficult day on Estadio Manolo Santana, needing to rally from 0-3 down in the decider to overcome British wildcard Jack Draper 2-6, 6-4, 7-5.
The Russian world number eight, who beat Djokovic in the Belgrade final last week, dropped serve twice in the opening set and lost an early advantage in the
second before squeezing past the left-handed Draper, who is ranked 121 in the world and was making his ATP clay-court debut in Madrid. The two-hour, 19-minute battle contained a combined 63 winners, 34 off Rublev’s racquet.
Rublev is the joint leader alongside Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz - on the ATP tour this season with three titles.
Another seed pushed to his limits was Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz. The 12th seed fought for nearly three hours before completing a 7-5, 6-7 (11/13), 6-3 victory over Bolivian qualifier Hugo Dellien. Hurkacz’s reward is a second-round date with in-form Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.
Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina produced a gritty performance to eke past US Open champion Emma Raducanu 6-2, 2-6, 6-4 and reach the quarter-finals of a WTA 1000 event for the first time.
The 37th-ranked Kalinina knocked out a Grand Slam winner for a third consecutive round, following up her victories over Sloane Stephens and Garbine Muguruza with a two-hour 18minute win over the ninth-seeded Raducanu.
“I want to give credit to Emma because we both played I think very good quality,” said Kalinina, who is making her Madrid debut this week.
Meanwhile, former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu’s run came to an end at the hands of American 12th seed Jessica Pegula, 7-5, 6-1.
Andreescu served for the opening set but was broken. She then had a nosebleed during the changeover at 6-5. The Canadian saved four set points on her serve in game 12 but faltered on the fifth as Pegula snatched the lead.
Despite a rain interruption in the second set, Pegula wrapped up the win in under two hours and set up a quarter-final against home favourite Sara Sorribes Tormo.—