18. 02. 2009. ยท
After three weeks off the court Nole needed 86 minutes to clinch the win which secured him a place in the second round of the Open 13 tournament in Marseille.
The best Serbian tennis player defeated the Frenchman Jeremy Chardy (54) in straight sets, 7:6(4) 6:4.
There were no breaks of service in the opening set. At 6:5 on Jeremy’s service, Nole had 0-30, but the home player held to bring the set to a tie-breaker. Djokovic was the first to make a mini break, which brought him advantage and he took it 7-4.
Chardy had a chance for a break already in the second game of the second set, but Novak saved it with a brilliant drop shot. The third player in the world had three break points in a row in the next game. He missed two, but managed to convert the third for 2:1. That was the only break in the match, and it decided the winner.
Djokovic had a fantastic 89 first service percentage. He hit 11aces and won 70 points, 5 more than his opponent.
Nole will play against Jan Hernych in the second round. Number 68 in the world from Czech Republic beat the Belgian Kristof Vliegen.
The Serbian and the Czech player met only once, in 2006, in the second round of Den Bosch (grass), Hernych won in straight sets, 6:2 6:4.
Their match is scheduled on Thursday.
