Home » After defeating a qualifier rated 130th, Novak Djokovic said, “Gave me all kinds of difficulties.”

During their victory in Dubai, Tomas Machac received a lot of appreciation from Novak Djokovic, who recognized that the Czech qualifier caused him “all kinds of difficulties.” Djokovic defeated Machac on Tuesday in his first match since winning the Australian Open, 6-3 3-6 7-6 (1), to advance to the round of 16 in Dubai.

The 35-year-old Djokovic and the 22-year-old Machac were playing their maiden match. “Tomas definitely didn’t perform like the 130th-ranked player in the world today. He was causing me a lot of problems. The ATP website quotes Djokovic as saying, “I guess when it mattered, I found another gear.

Djokovic also mentioned that prior to Dubai, he didn’t play much tennis. “You can always improve physically. I expect the best tennis and preparation I can get in terms of standards, levels, and quality. I did experience pain for a few weeks, and it took me some time to adjust to holding the racquet.

Coming into Dubai, I hadn’t played much tennis, so I’m hoping that as the competition goes on, I can improve my tennis as well, said Djokovic.

Why did Djokovic beat Machac?

Machac was broken by Djokovic in the fourth game to give the Serbian a 3-1 lead, but the Czech regained the break in the fifth game.

Djokovic didn’t let losing a first-set break affect him, though, as he broke Machac once more in the sixth game to take a 4-2 lead. Djokovic maintained his serve throughout the remainder of the first set to take the opening game. Machac, who had dropped the opening set, broke Djokovic in the second game of the second set and held on to his service the rest of the way to force a third set.

With a 3-1 advantage in the third set, Djokovic broke Machac in the fourth game after saving a break point in the first game. Even though he was down a break, Machac didn’t give up, breaking Djokovic back in the seventh game to force a tie-break.

Djokovic dominated the tie-break to win the match in three sets and go to the round of 16 against Tallon Griekspoor.