Pre-tournament favorite Novak Djokovic marched into round two of the US Open Monday as he launched his bid for a 18th Grand Slam with a st...
Pre-tournament favorite Novak Djokovic marched into round two of the US Open Monday as he launched his bid for a 18th Grand Slam with a straight-sets win.
The world number one dispatched unheralded Damir Dzumhur of Bosnia-Herzegovina 6-1, 6-4,6-1 under floodlights at an empty Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York. The Serbian superstar took just 23 minutes to win the first set before laboring to a narrow victory in an hour-long second set.
Earlier, fifth seed Alexander Zverev was made to work hard as he progressed into round two of the US Open Monday following a three-hour-long tussle with 2017 finalist Kevan Anderson.
The German, seeking his first Grand Slam title, took the first set on a tie-break 7-6 (7/2) before losing the second 7-5 in an eerily empty Arthur Ashe Stadium. Ultimately, the 23-year-old proved too much for the South African veteran, winning the third set 6-3 and the fourth 7-5.
Afterwards he shared a moment on a big screen with his tennis-playing brother Mischa Zverev who was beamed into the stadium from his sofa at home.
“I am actually quite happy with a first round like that,” said Zverev, who reached his first Grand Slam semi-final at the Australian Open earlier this year.
“Kevin is not someone you usually play in a first round....
