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By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Monday January 12, 2025

 
Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic dropped the opening set but rallied to take the next three as he dispatched American wild card Nishesh Basavareddy in four.

Photo Source: TTV

19-year-old wild card was living the dream for the first set and a half of his first-round match with 10-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic.

Then the nightmare kicked in.

Tennis Express

Djokovic’s world-class game kicked into high gear just as Basavareddy’s legs began to fail him. With Basavareddy, a former Stanford standout who is just starting to cut his teeth on tour, leading by a set and battling extremely hard to stay on serve in the second he suddenly felt the weight of his mission in his legs.

Cramping was setting in, and as Djokovic broke serve then consolidated to take the second set, Basavareddy could be seen at his chair in a panic. As the on-court physio vigoriously rubbed his left leg, the California native struggled to consume as much of his fluids as he could before the third set began.

Credit Basavareddy, who toughed it out and continued to play at a surprisingly high level, but Djokovic now had his teeth into the contest and he would not relent.

"I was very impressed by him," Djokovic said after his win. "I think the whole stadium was really. That's why he got a great round of applause and appreciation from the crowd. They saw what he did on the court, the quality of tennis he put in, the fighting spirit."

An early break was all the 24-time major champion would need in the third set as he dropped just five points on serve to lead two sets to one.

Another early break in the fourth put Djokovic firmly in the driver’s seat. He saved a break point in the fourth game of the set, and didn’t look back after that.

Djokovic finished in cruise control, wrapping up his 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 triumph playing confidently, much to the delight of a packed Rod Laver Arena that was dotted with Serbian flags.

With legend Andy Murray sitting courtside in the coaching box, Djokovic improved his all-time record at the Australian Open to 95-9.

"I really like the feeling having Andy as my coach in the corner from this year," Djokovic said. "New coaching stuff, player/coaching stuff. Seating which is basically on the court in the corner which allows me to hear them better.

"He gets everything that I'm going through," Djokovic said. "In those moments on the court, it's a big battle. Of course, he wants me to show the energy, to show the fist pump and everything to get myself going. I think he was doing great today. He was standing up several times, trying to encourage me and support me. I enjoyed it. I really did enjoy it."

He will face Portugal’s Jaime Faria in the second round.


The Serb is bidding for multiple milestones in Australia this year. He can win a record 25th major title and claim his record 11th title in Australia. If he can win the title he’d also become the oldest man to claim a men’s singles Grand Slam title. The 37-year-old has made a habit of rewriting tennis’ record books over the last decade and the burning question as the 2025 season kick off is: what new chapters will he write?

Meanwhile, Basavareddy answered a lot of questions about his potential as a pro on Monday.

His game is modelled after Djokovic and he put it on full display in the opening set as he took the play to the Serbian with a well-rounded attack that featured pinpoint serving and penetrating groundstrokes off of both wings. He moved extremely well and took the ball early, changing directions in the rallies before Djokovic could get comfortable.

He kept it up for much of the second but the stress and tension surely played a part in his physical struggles. The change in tone that occurred late in the second set was Djokovic’s cue to tap the accelerator and take full ownership of the match.



 

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