‘I Struggled’- Despite Overwhelming Dominance, Novak Djokovic Recalls Tough Challenges Against ‘Athletic’ 36-Year-Old Tennis Veteran

Novak Djokovic is reigning on the battlefield as he aims to claim his 24th Grand Slam at the US Open. The Serb said he felt mixed emotions about the way his first-round match at Cincinnati Masters had ended. With the retirement of Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, Djoker glided smoothly to the second round, where he upheld one of the most iconic Head-to-Head records the Open Era has ever witnessed.

After the ATP 2nd seed aced to the quarter-finals of the tournament, Djokovic quipped on his past. The Serb reflected on the match he won and the experience of facing his opponent and fellow veteran, Gael Monfils, after years.

Novak Djokovic once struggled to play Gael Monfils

The Serb defeated Monfils in straight sets, 3-6, 2-6. This is the 19th match they played against each other, with Djokovic dominating throughout. After his first-round win, the Djoker referred to the match between him and the Frenchman as ‘The Duel of Veterans.’ Both players turned ATP professionals with a gap of only a year in between, and Djoker was the first.

Djoker prevailed in all of their ATP matches. After his recent win, the 23-time Grand Slam champion revealed that he physically struggled to play against the Frenchman. The Serb said, “It was an evolution of both players over the last 15 years. We’ve been facing each other in different parts of the world, also in juniors.. early on, I struggled with him physically.”

The former ATP No. 1 added, “When you’re playing against 1 of the most athletic guys in the world, you have to be ready for every ball to come back. I guess his game suits me. It’s nice to see him back. We haven’t played for quite a few years. Great to see him back playing at a high level.” Monfils played a match against the former ATP 1st seed before turning pro, with an astonishing outcome.

READ MORE: ‘Think He Knows It Too’- Optimistic About Dominating the US Hardcourts, Novak Djokovic Takes a Sharp Dig at Gael Monfils Ahead of Their Mighty Clash in Cincinnati

Gael Monfils won the first singles match he ever played against the Serb

The former 6th seed encountered Djokovic in 2004, a year after the Serb turned pro. They played in Italy’s F4 Futures event. In the quarter-finals, Monfils defeated Djokovic, 4-6, 7-6(5), 2-6. So the Frenchman owns one victory against the Serb, and they actually played 20 matches in total.

In one of the 18 ATP matches played, Monfils walked out of the 2021 Paris Masters, which put a win in Djoker’s box. Except for these 2 matches, the 2nd seed claimed all of the others by sweating it hard against one of the most athletic players. Djokovic will now play Taylor Fritz in the quarter-finals.

The American and the Serb previously encountered 6 times from 2019-2022. The quarter-final match at Ohio will be their first match against each other this year. Fritz could only manage to win 2 sets against Djokovic in 6 matches. Who do you think will win the next early morning match tomorrow?

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