Djokovic pushes past Popyrin at Australian Open

Two rounds, two bumpy paths to victory. Yet Novak Djokovic rolls on at the Australian Open.

The 10-time champion at the hard-court major in Melbourne held off home favourite Alexei Popyrin for a 6-3, 4-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 win on Wednesday night inside Rod Laver Arena. Djokovic was in danger of falling behind mid-match but crucially saved four set points from 0/40 at 4-5 in the third set before pressing on to second-round victory.

“He had quite an easy forehand and he missed it,” said Djokovic, when asked about his escape at the end of the third set. “I didn’t do anything special, and I was lucky on that point, on that game, to get away. He was the better player I think for a set and a half. In the second set and third set he was the better player.

“Things changed around, and the momentum shifted in the tie-break. I managed to put the ball more in the court than he did. I don’t think I played at the highest level. In some instances yes, but also credit to him for tactically coming up with the right game plan and serving big. He deserves a big round of applause.”

Unstoppable 🔥@DjokerNole notches up his 30th consecutive win at Melbourne Park and moves into the third round for the 16th time.@AustralianOpen | #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/XyQJ1pjqz4

— ATP Tour (@atptour) January 17, 2024

Just as in his four-set opening win against Dino Prizmic, Djokovic struggled to consistently produce his best level against Popyrin. The 36-year-old Serbian, who spoke about managing a wrist issue as he arrived in Melbourne, was made to dig deep to shake off the World No. 43 but kept his cool at key moments to extend his Australian Open winning streak to 30 matches.

Djokovic was largely solid behind serve and won 82 per cent (60/73) of points behind his first delivery in the match. He will hope to cut down his unforced errors for his third-round clash against Tomas Martin Etcheverry, however, particularly on his forehand — the top seed made 22 of his 32 unforced errors off that wing against Popyrin.

“I sincerely hope so,” said Djokovic, when asked if he expected to raise his level for his next match. “That’s what it’s going to take for me to go deep in the tournament. I haven’t been playing my best, I’m still trying to find my form.

“Particularly in the early rounds, you play players that have nothing to lose really. They come out on the centre court and try to play their best match, their best tennis, and I think both my first and second-round opponents were great quality tennis players. I managed to find a way to win in four. That’s what counts in the end, and hopefully I’ll be able to build as this tournament progresses.”

With his three-hour, 11-minute triumph, Djokovic stayed on course to win a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title. The No. 1 spot in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings is also at stake for the Serbian this fortnight, when both Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev could usurp top spot from Djokovic.

Etcheverry will be Djokovic’s next opponent at Melbourne Park after the 30th-seeded Argentine earlier defeated Gael Monfils 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. The World No. 1 leads Etcheverry 2-0 in the pair’s Lexus ATP Head2Head series, having triumphed at ATP Masters 1000 events in Rome and Paris in 2023.