No.2 seed Novak Djokovic set a quarter-final clash with seventh-seeded Stanislas Wawrinka at the BNP Paribas Masters on Thursday in Paris as he defeated American John Isner 6-7 (5), 6-1, 6-2.
Novak won 88 % of his first service points and broke serve four times from 16 opportunities to claim his 64th win of the season in one hour and 50 minutes.
Match statistics: aces (11-12), double faults (1-2), winners (40-32), unforced errors (18-38), total points won (107-77).
Novak failed to convert six break point chances in the opening set. It went to a tie-breaker, which Isner won 7-5.
The 2009 champion who is making his ninth appearance in Paris, stayed focused and continued putting pressure on his opponent. He finally broke the resistance of the American and found a solution for his powerful serve. Nole made a double break in both the second and third sets, and booked his place in the last eight.
“When I was a set down, I was frustrated, but I tried to hold my composure,” said Novak. “It’s not the first time I’m in this particular situation, so that experience helped me to keep on believing I could win. I knew as soon as I make a break I was going to start playing better and relax. That’s what happened.”
Wawrinka also reached quarter-finals with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Nicolas Almagro.
Djokovic has a 13-2 ATP Head2Head lead over the Swiss, having beaten him in their last 12 encounters.
“Whenever we play each other it’s long exchanges, a very tough match mentally and physically. But I’m ready for it. I have been playing well and obviously he has been enjoying probably his best season,” the Belgrade native said ahead of the upcoming challenge.
The Australian Open champion has already secured his place at the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour Finals and is looking to win his sixth tour-level title in 2013.
You can download Nole November Desktop Wallpaper here.
Photo: AFP
