‘I played as well as I can’ - Novak Djokovic cruises past Cristian Garin in straight sets at Astana Open
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Updated 05/10/2022 at 15:47 GMT
World No. 7 Novak Djokovic believes he adapted “perfectly” in his first-round match at the Astana Open, just three days after he won his 89th ATP career title in Tel Aviv. Djokovic comfortably beat Cristian Garin in straight sets in 61 minutes. The 21-time Grand Slam champion will play Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands in the next round on Thursday.
Highlights: Djokovic breezes past Garin to reach round two in Astana
Novak Djokovic says he played "as well as I can" in his dominant 6-1 6-1 victory over Cristian Garin in the first round of the Astana Open.
Djokovic broke straight away and did so on two more occasions as he raced to the first set in 24 minutes.
It was more of the same in the second set as he won a sensational point to break in the fourth game before going on to take the win.
He will play Botic van de Zandschulp in the next round on Thursday.
“From the start to the end it was a great performance,” said Djokovic. “Playing in a new tournament in different conditions, first match, it’s never easy.
“You are looking to see how you can adapt but I did it perfectly really. I played as well as I can, just made him work and used every opportunity that was presented to me.”
Djokovic is playing off the back of winning his 89th ATP career title in Tel Aviv.
The Serbian looked extremely strong and is the favourite to win this week’s tournament in Kazakhstan.
Asked how long it took him to adjust to the slower conditions in Astana compared to Tel Aviv, Djokovic said: “I was lucky that throughout my career I was pretty good to adjusting to different conditions and surfaces.
"I think that experience comes with knowing what to do.
“Winning a tournament, losing in a final or a semi-final makes a difference mentally. Coming into this tournament, I feel excited and motivated so I think that helps to adjust quickly.”
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Highlights: Mannarino fights back to beat Goffin to reach quarter-finals of Astana Open
Third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas survived an impressive Luca Nardi performance by narrowly beating the 19-year-old 7-6 7-6.
The Greek utilised his experience and strong service game to advance to the quarter-finals, where he will face either Hubert Hurkacz or Alexander Bublik.
Elsewhere, David Goffin, who stunned Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday, lost his last-16 match against Adrian Mannarino, whilst Roberto Bautista Agut and Andrey Rublev joined the Frenchman in the quarter-finals.
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