Jiri Vesely stuns Novak Djokovic to reach the third round in Monte-Carlo - UBITENNIS
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Jiri Vesely stuns Novak Djokovic to reach the third round in Monte-Carlo

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Jiri Vesely stuns World number 1 Novak Djokovic 6-4 2-6 6-4 in just over two hours in the second round of the Rolex Masters in Monte-Carlo at the Monte-Carlo Country Club, where the Serbian star won two of the past three editions and trains every day. Djokovic has suffered his second defeat of the year and his earliest loss on the ATP Tour since losing to Grigor Dimitrov in the second round in Madrid in 2013.

Except from a shock exit in this year’s Dubai quarter finals against Feliciano Lopez, when he was forced to retire due to a eye infection, Djokovic has won 9 of his 10 tournaments since the Cincinnati final in 2015 when he lost to Roger Federer. Since then he has won 22 consecutive matches at Masters 1000 level. He won 14 matches in a row including his back-to-back titles in Indian Wells and Miami. He had clinched 18 of his last 20 matches in Monte-Carlo.

The defeat of Djokovic means that both last year’s Monte-Carlo finalists have been knocked out of the tournament after just two rounds.

Vesely lost just one point in his first four service points in the first eight games of the first set. Vesely earned three break points and broke serve in the ninth game for 5-4 on a forehand error. Vesely brought up a double set point with a backhand into the corner and served out at 15 to clinch the first set 6-4. Vesely played a very solid first set in which he dropped just two points in five service games and won 20 of his 22 points played on his serve.

Djokovic bounced back by breaking in the sixth game of the second set for 4-2. Vesely double faulted to face a double set point on his serve. The Czech saved the first break point with ace but sailed a forehand beyond the baseline to drop his serve on the second set point.

Vesely broke Djokovic in the first game of the decisive set, but the Serbian star broke straight back in the next game. Vesely broke again in the third game to take a 2-1 lead and held his next service games. Vesely backed up his break for 3-1 with a backhand drop volley. Vesely fired his fourth ace to pull away to 4-2.

Djokovic saved a match point at 3-5 with a backhand volley inside the sideline in the 9th game to force Vesely to serve out for the match. The young Czech player served out for the win at 5-4 in the 10th game to claim the biggest victory of his career. Serving for the match, Vesely hit a backhand drop shot from behind the baseline. Vesely followed it up with a serve winner. Vesely claimed the win on the second match point as Djokovic’s forehand landed wide.

Vesely claimed the inaugural ATP Star of Tomorrow in 2013 before reaching two finals in 2015. He won his first title as a qualifier in Auckland and lost to Guillermo Garcia Lopez in the Bucharest final in 2015. Earlier this year he won just one match in seven tournaments but he returned to his best form recently when he reached the semifinals in Marrakesh where he lost against Borna Coric. Vesely will take on either Gael Monfils or Paolo Lorenzi in the third round. He had never advanced beyond the first round in Monte-Carlo. Vesely has scored his first win against a top-10 in his career in eight attempts.

“It’ s something amazing. When I went on court, I had completely different thinking. I hoped to win a game, hoped to do well. I really didn’t think I could beat Novak today. Novak was not at his best level  He made a lot of mistakes from the beginning. That’s what gave me a little bit more confidence creating the rallies. I didn’t give him too much rhythm”, said Vesely.

Djokovic had won nine of his last 10 tournaments, including two Grand Slams and four consecutive Masters 1000 titles.

“I was playing really bad. I wasn’t feeling any freshness. There is the proof that nobody is unbeatable. It’s not easy to lose the match in terms of accepting it, but I have to congratulate my opponent. I will get a long break. The time off will serve me mentally mostly. I have to move on. It’s already behind me. I have had already an incredible start to the season and this match will not disturb my preparation for the rest of the season”, said Djokovic.

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Alcaraz Halts Sinner’s Winning Streak To Reach The Final In Indian Wells

Carlos Alcaraz earns the right to defend his title at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells fending off Jannik Sinner’s assault to his ATP no. 2 spot

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Jannik Sinner (left) and Carlos Alcaraz (right) - Indian Wells 2024 (photo Twitter X @BNPPARIBASOPEN)

All good things come to an end. Jannik Sinner was on a 19-match winning streak since his loss to Novak Djokovic in the final of the Nitto ATP Finals that included his first Grand Slam win in Australia last January, and appeared as the most in-form player at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, the first Masters 1000 tournament of the season. But as he faced Carlos Alcaraz in an eagerly-awaited semifinal, he was unable to continue his quest for the third consecutive title of the season, succumbing to the Spaniard 1-6, 6-3, 6-2.

The match was a face-off for the no. 2 spot in the ATP ranking that Alcaraz will still occupy next Monday regardless of the result of Sunday’s final, and this is a much-needed confidence boost for him after a disappointing start of the season where he was handily beaten in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open by Zverev and did not win any tournament during the South American clay court swing where he was ousted by Nicolas Jarry in Buenos Aires and had to retire for an ankle injury at the Rio Open.

The match, originally scheduled for 1.30 pm Pacific Time, had to be suspended for over three hours after only three games because of an unusual downpour. As the match resumed, Sinner appeared once again the perfectly-tuned machine that had been crushing opponents with metronomic regularity for the past weeks while Alcaraz was struggling to keep up with his opponent’s pace from the baseline.

The first set was smooth sailing for the Italian who cruised to a comprehensive 6-1 in 27 minutes: Alcaraz was tentative from the baseline and could not find the right position to fire his screamers and change the tactical discourse of the match. “Then at the beginning of the second set, as I saw he was making a lot of mistakes, I tried to be as solid as possible when I should have kept pushing instead – Sinner said during his press conference – and that’s what cost me the match in the end”.

While serving at 1-2 in the second set, a few uncharacteristic forehand mistakes started to dot his thus far spotless game, and that cost him the break that sent Alcaraz flying to a 4-1 advantage. The Spaniard then found the confidence to change his return position and make Sinner work a lot more on his service games, as the Italian struggled to find a countermeasure to the tactical shift in the match: “I kept doing the same thing over and over again”, Sinner stressed, and forehand unforced errors started to pile up to reach the burdensome number of 27 at the end of the match.

Sinner had the chance to find his way back into the second set while Alcaraz was serving at 3-5, but Carlos cancelled his break point with a laser backhand down the line that had the 15,000-strong crowd cheering on their feet.

The third set ran away very quickly from the Italian, who started touching repeatedly the back of his left leg around his knee. Sinner got broken again during the third game, and while going for a last-ditch attempt to recover a short volley by Alcaraz he tumbled to the ground slightly injuring his right elbow and arm. From there onwards it was just more mistakes by Sinner and a clinical execution by Alcaraz on how to take home a match.

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“It Feels Great’ – Novak Djokovic Marks Indian Wells Return With Milestone Win

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Novak Djokovic - Indian Wells 2024 (foto Ubitennis)

Novak Djokovic says he still has a ‘great feeling’ in Indian Wells after playing his first match at the event for five years. 

The world No.1 battled to a 6-2, 5-7, 6-3, win over Aleksandar Vukic in what was his first taste of competitive tennis since losing in the semi-finals of the Australian Open. It was a far from smooth encounter for Djokovic, who hit 23 winners and won 83% of his first service points. In the second set, he was broken twice with the second of those occurring when he was serving at 5-6. Nevertheless, he battled back in the decider to win. 

This year is the first time Djokovic has been able to play in the Masters 1000 event since 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the 2020 tournament was cancelled, he was unable to play the next three editions due to restrictions placed on unvaccinated foreign visitors to America. Despite the absence, the five-time champion states that his love for the event is as strong as ever.

“It feels great to come back with the win. It’s been five years and the great feeling is still there. I enjoyed myself very much. Beautiful stadium. Great atmosphere.” Djokovic said during his press conference. 
“I was a bit nervous at the beginning. I haven’t played a match in more than five weeks. I thought the start was good. Then I think he upped his game.
“I probably lost a little bit of the momentum. We got into the third set, I thought the level of the tennis was pretty good in the third. Great points. He made me produce some really important points in games in order to prevail in this match. I’m glad that I was pushed, as well, which is important.”

Djokovic’s latest victory is his 400th in a Masters 1000 tournament. He is only the second player in history to have reached this milestone since the tournament category was introduced in 1990. The first to do so was Rafael Nadal who currently has 406 wins to his name. 

He could create more history in Indian Wells should the Serbian go on to claim the title this year. If he does, he would become the first man to have won it for a sixth time. Although Djokovic is refusing to get too far ahead of himself. 

“I would love to,” he said of trying to claim a sixth title. “Obviously there is still a long way to get to the title match, but it’s a good start.’
“I know I can always produce better tennis. Obviously very self-critical, and I think some extent it’s also important because then it puts you in the right mindset of wanting to work more and being engaged in the process of improving on a daily basis, or trying to perfect your game and right the wrongs that you’ve done in a previous match or previous practice session.
“So that’s what I’m going to keep doing and hopefully building my game as this tournament is played over 10 to 14 days, so it allows you to have the practice days also between matches, which then allows you to work on certain specifics in the game.”

Djokovic will play Italy’s Luca Nardi in the next round. 

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Carlos Alcaraz Brushes Aside Injury Doubts To Reach Indian Wells Third Round

Carlos Alcaraz is into the third round at Indian Wells after a three set win over Matteo Arnaldi.

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(@BNPPARIBASOPEN - Twitter)

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz overcame injury doubts to edge past Matteo Arnaldi 6-7(5) 6-0 6-1 at Indian Wells.

The world number two had to endure an aggressive opening set from the in-form Italian to reach the third round.

After a tight opening set, Alcaraz raced through the last two sets as he set up a third round showdown with Felix Auger-Aliassime.

The Spaniard had entered this match with injury doubts after retiring from his match with Thiago Monteiro in Rio De Janeiro.

However Alcaraz was very pleased with how his ankle held up as he moved on in California, “Honestly it surprised me. I felt great, moving normally without thinking about it,” Alcaraz told the ATP website.

“It was a really good match to realise that I am better than I thought. I think I played great tennis because of that. I had to change just a few things. I made a few mistakes in the first set… I had to put in more first serves in the second and third set, and I think that was a big key to improving my level a little bit, to be in the rallies — long rallies as well, to get the rhythm, and I’m really happy to get it at the end.

“But right now I’m getting better and feeling really, really well. But I think I have to get a good rhythm step by step. I think that’s the big difference between last year and this one. This [is a] really special tournament for me. I want to do it well. This is the first match playing high intensity and I didn’t know how it’s going respond, the ankle.

“I have to deal with it, but I didn’t deal with the nerves very well in the first set, moving differently, hitting the ball differently. My game is playing aggressive all the time. And try to stay calm and wait for my chances.

“When you get nervous, you don’t think about it. You don’t hit the ball as good as you want. You don’t move as good as you want. I think that’s the big difference.”

Alcaraz will hope for a good week this week as he defends the Indian Wells title as he aims to win a first title since Wimbledon this week.

Next for the Spaniard will be Felix Auger-Aliassime, who defeated Constant Lestienne in straight sets.

Auger-Aliassime currently leads the head-to-head 3-1 but Alcaraz won their last meeting in Indian Wells last year.

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