BRISBANE (Australia): World number two Novak Djokovic produced some of his best tennis to see off South African Kevin Anderson and give Serbia victory in their opening ATP Cup Group A tie on Saturday.
Upon beating Kevin Anderson 7-6(5), 7-6(6), Djokovic dropped his racquet and lifted his arms to the sky, inviting cheers from the boisterous flag-waving and pro-Serbian crowd.
He later skipped back to the court and leapt into the air, fist pumping the win.
For Djokovic, ATP Cup means a lot
Djokovic and Serbia had not clinched the inaugural ATP Cup title; they had won only their first ATP Cup tie against South Africa. But that’s how much the win – and the tournament – mean to the World No. 2 and his countrymen.
“I thought it was a fantastic opening match of the season,” Djokovic said. “I was really pleasantly surprised and I’m very grateful to all the fans coming out and being patient, staying all the way to the end of the match, especially Serbian guys that really showed the great passion.”
He and Anderson typically meet at the end of the tournament, in the final weekend rather than the first.
But on day two of the 2020 ATP Tour season, Djokovic and Anderson added Pat Rafter Arena to the list of venues where their ATP Head2Head rivalry has played out.
Djokovic started as favourite
Djokovic won against Anderson in the 2018 Wimbledon final and The O2 in southeast London for the 2018 Nitto ATP Finals.
He persevered through some up-and-down tennis to also take their first meeting in Australia. The Serbian No. 1 started quickly, holding to love twice and leading 4-1 as Anderson endured a glacial start.
The 33-year-old was playing his first match since 5 July at Wimbledon and played only five tournaments in 2019 due to injuries (right elbow, right knee).
In September, the 6’8” right-hander had to shut down his season because of knee surgery.
“Coming first match back and straight away playing Novak’s obviously a little bit tough,” said Anderson. “Definitely got off to a little bit of a nervous start but I am really pleased with the way I was able to turn it around.” (atptour.com)
