Novak Djokovic is still perfect at the 2008 Australian Open. Four matches, four straight sets wins. The world number three claims he needed a little luck to keep that perfect record against Lleyton Hewitt, which the Serbian took 7-5, 6-3, 6-3.
Djokovic, down 2-4 in the opening set, was staring at another loss of serve, before clawing his way back to an unlikely first set win.
“(At) the start of the match I wasn’t playing the way I wanted, but I managed to get through with some lucky shots,” Djokovic said
“I stayed with him.”
Djokovic enjoyed waves of success on Hewitt’s serve, breaking the Australian seven times in 15 games. The 3rd seed noticed a change in Lleyton shortly after the 60 minute first set.
“I think in the second set, you know, he was struggling with that long points and he made some uncharacteristic, for him, unforced errors.
“It’s understandable because he finished his match, third round, at 5:00 in the morning, so he was tired”
Djokovic will face 5th seeded Spaniard David Ferrer in the quarter finals, with Roger Federer likely waiting in the semis..
“(Ferrer) doesn’t have anything to lose here. He’s been playing some amazing tennis.”
Ferrer had enjoyed a stellar last few months, including a win over the Serbian at the end of season Masters Cup in Shanghai
“One thing is for sure: He’s obviously going to try and make me run a lot and play long points.” Djokovic said. “The main change now is that I’m much fresher than I was in the Masters Cup. I was very impatient in that match.
“It’s going to be a different story now.”
Share This Post!
These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.
No comments yet.