“I don’t feel any pain now.” Everyone is concerned about the evolution of the right wrist of Novak Djokovic. The ten-time Australian Open champion, attributing the trouble he felt to his loss against the Australian Alex de Minaur in the United Cup, the tournament he chose as a test to carry out the defense of the first Grand Slam of the season.
All eyes were on the world number one, on a historic day at Melbourne Park as the competition had not yet opened on Sunday. Protected by anonymity, a rival who earned his debut at a Grand Slam on his own merits, surviving the ever-demanding qualifying phase despite his inexperience.
The Croatian Dino Prizmic, 18 years old and No. 178 ATP, is no stranger to the major professional circuit. The Roland Garros junior champion has shown credentials as an interesting player for the future, although the complex step towards the elite remains to be completed.
He showed star qualities, as long as he kept the attitude that allowed him to put an entire team in trouble. Novak Djokovic in its most dominant territory. The Serbian, 36 years old, got a good scare when his Balkan opponent showed talent, both in defense and on the counterattack. Prismic He returns a thousand balls and also knows how to send with his right foot when he plays. He has class and a lot of courage.
He pushed Djokovic to the limit, responding with the determination of a legend of 24 Grand Slam crowns despite being weaker than usual. He took a physical and even emotional beating for a tournament entry, but he didn’t pale in the face of the push of a kid twice his age. He also resisted the urge to eat the chair umpire when he was warned for exceeding the service time before the break ball, representing a 1-3 fall in the second set.
‘Nole’ found a way and won 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-3 and 6-4 in 4h.01′in front of guests like Andre Agassi. He only caught a breather three hours into the match, once he leveled the hard-fought third set with a partial 4-0 after finding himself down 2-3 after surrendering the 16-minute game.
primary, treated at the beginning of the left thigh, wearing a bandage, able to read the game, complete and courageous. Physical build helps (1.88 meters, 80 kilos). Once he released his nerves, without any pressure, he underlined his features.
The responsibility falls completely Djokovic, who took it from the experience on which he stamped his classification. Seasoned in a thousand battles, he punished Primic’s lack of habit of making multiple requests in a row. Djokovic, who struggled, went for it with an 8-0 aggregate run that put him 4-0 ahead in the fourth set. There was another push from the Croatian (4-3), not enough but a further reflection of the complexity of the match. ‘Nole’ solved after failing to score four balls at 5-3. He finished 6-4, relieved, with one serve, in the seventh option of the match.
In the second round, an Australian: Alexei Popyrin or Marc Polmans. Djokovic will convert effort into drive for subsequent commitments. SA Prime It was he who returned to the ground, after the dream of the headquarters with ‘Nole’, to confirm the promising prospects for the future. It has many elements to get an important place in the circuit.
Djokovic He rewarded his effort and intelligence by requesting a special ovation from the Rod Laver Arena crowd. The Serbian has a 29-match winning streak dating back to 2018. He also drew a standing ovation.
Source: La Verdad
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