Djokovic addressed the media after the match, holding a press conference past midnight on Tuesday:
“I believe it was a decent start. I faced some difficulties with my serve and some shots. However, overall I felt good from the back of the court. Beginning can be tough, especially when you haven’t played on this surface for months and coming off an Olympic win on clay. I haven’t had any official matches before the US Open, so I anticipate facing more challenges in the initial rounds.”
I expect to be tested more in the early rounds
Djokovic commenting on his lack of hard court matches
The 24-time major champion, although solid overall, made 40 unforced errors against Albot, had 10 double faults, and only landed 47% of his first serves – a low number for his standards. Yet, as he mentioned, the defending champion has not played a professional match on a hard court since Indian Wells around six months ago, focusing on the Paris Olympic games held on clay for the past five weeks.
The gold medalist’s first round ended just before midnight, a situation Djokovic hopes to avoid in the future:
“Well, I think getting older doesn’t help with playing late. I can feel my energy levels dropping now. It has been a long wait. I expected to start much earlier, but the previous match went on longer than anticipated. You just have to accept it. I prefer playing night matches, but I prefer starting first. So, hopefully I get more opportunities to play at night and be scheduled first for a more reasonable start and finish time.”
Hope to play more night matches and start first for a decent finish time
The 24-time major champion reflecting on the late finish on Monday
Djokovic is set to face Laslo Djere in the second round of the US Open on Wednesday, a rematch of last year’s third round where Djere took the first two sets before Djokovic rallied to advance to the last 16.
Talking about his upcoming match with Djere, who won a tough five-setter against Jan-Lennard Struff, the world No 2 said:
“It’s a great moment for Serbian tennis to have two Serbian players competing against each other. One Serbian player is guaranteed a spot in the third round. Hopefully, it will be me, but Djere enjoys playing on a big stage. He performs well under these conditions. The environment here suits him. It’s faster, the ball stays low. He has a strong backhand and serve, as well as a solid return. He’s in great physical shape. I remember our match well. It was a tough one. I’ll analyze it and try to improve on my performance from last year.”
