Novak Djokovic sails into Tel Aviv Open quarter-finals
Sign up to our free sport newsletter for all the latest news on everything from cycling to boxing
Sign up to our free sport email for all the latest news
Thanks for signing up to the
Sport email
Novak Djokovic made light work of Pablo Andujar to progress into the quarter-finals of the Tel Aviv Watergen Open on Thursday.
World number seven Djokovic was playing his first regular ATP Tour event since the Italian Open in May, having only appeared at Roland Garros, Wimbledon and the Laver Cup this summer.
Djokovic got the better of Andujar 6-0 6-3 in one hour and 28 minutes in only his fourth match since he claimed a 21st grand-slam title at SW19 in July.
The Serbian won the opening seven games of the contest before Andujar finally got off the mark following a marathon game that lasted 20 minutes.
Recommended
“The first match started off in a perfect way for me,” Djokovic said, as quoted by atptour.com.
“I won seven games in a row and we were fighting in that eighth game for 15 minutes, I think. It was one of the longest games I’ve ever played in my life and I’ve played many, many games in my life. But credit to Pablo for fighting and playing a great match as well.”
British number six Liam Broady joined the Serbian in the last eight in Israel after an excellent 6-4 4-6 6-3 win over fifth seed Botic van de Zandschulp.
Diego Schwartzman, seeded third, also exited the tournament in Tel Aviv following a 6-3 2-6 7-6 (7) loss to Arthur Rinderknech.
At another ATP 250 event, the Korea Open, Cameron Norrie ended his three-match losing streak by beating wild card Kaichi Uchida 6-2 6-2.
Top seed and US Open runner-up Casper Ruud also made it through to the quarter-finals, but only following a back-and-forth battle with Nicolas Jarry, which the Norwegian won 6-2 3-6 6-3.
Recommended
Jannik Sinner triumphed in the last-16 at the Sofia Open by a 6-3 6-4 scoreline against Nuno Borges.
Holger Rune followed the Italian into the final eight with a 6-7 (1) 6-4 6-3 victory over Lorenzo Sonego.
Register for free to continue reading
Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism
By registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists
{{#verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}} {{^verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}}
By clicking ‘Create my account’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.
Already have an account? sign in
By clicking ‘Register’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.
Register for free to continue reading
Registration is a free and easy way to support our truly independent journalism
By registering, you will also enjoy limited access to Premium articles, exclusive newsletters, commenting, and virtual events with our leading journalists
{{#verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}} {{^verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}}
By clicking ‘Create my account’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.
Already have an account? sign in
By clicking ‘Register’ you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use, Cookie policy and Privacy notice.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy policy and Terms of service apply.
Source: Read Full Article