Novak Djokovic registers first victory as World No. 1 against Nikolay Davydenko – Rogers Cup 2011
Newly crowned world number one, Novak Djokovic recorded his first victory as the top ranked player against the resilient Russian, Nikolay Davydenko, in the second round of Rogers Cup on Wednesday afternoon.
The top seed Serb continued his invincible form this year and scrambled a straight sets victory over the former world number three, settling the final scores at 7-5, 6-1, to make it into the round of 16 of the ATP (Association
of Tennis Professionals) Master Series event being played at Montreal, Canada. It took one hour and thirty six minutes for Djokovic to wrap up victory after a stiff contest with the Russian opponent, who once took the complete hold of the game but eventually
finished on the losing end.
“I’m just trying to handle it (being number one) the best possible way but on the other side trying to keep my life very simple, the way it was before,” Djokovic told reporters after winning the contest, “of course, the world is
looking at me a bit differently. It carries a little bit more weight on your shoulders.”
Djokovic was seen in action for the first time since his Wimbledon Championships victory against Rafael Nadal last month and appeared a bit rusty in at the beginning. The Serb was off to a sloppy start in the opening set and it
appeared for a while that the world number one is in danger of ending his opening round matchup in a disaster. Davydenko took off the first set with a flyer and two consecutive serve breaks from the Russian’s racquet propelled him to a 4-1 lead in the game.
The belligerent top seed then shifted to his top gears to reel off the following three straight games to level the scores at 4-4. A fourth serve break from the Serb closed out the opening set for him at 7-5 and once getting in
him winning momentum, Djokovic never looked back at his opponent. Davydenko won just one game in the second set and suffered three consecutive break points to submit the matchup at 1-6, letting Djokovic into the round of 16 of the tournament.
Up next for Djokovic is the Croatia’s number one, Marin Cilic, in the third round of Rogers Cup for a place in the quarter-finals. Cilic made a huge upset in the second round draws by defeating the 16th seed Argentine,
Juan Martin Del Potro, in straight sets 6-3, 6-4, to meet the top seed.
Tags: