There was good news for the tennis world on Wednesday, as Novak Djokovic announced his return to tennis. The Serbian former World No.1 produced a highly impressive display to thrash Dominic Thiem 6-1, 6-4 in the Kooyong Classic.
The win will alleviate the concerns that many had after Djokovic withdrew from an exhibition event in Abu Dhabi. The Serbian had been due to face Roberto Bautista-Agut, but pulled after suffering recurring pain in his elbow. Fortunately, there were no such concerns as the six-time Australian Open champion to the court against Thiem. Djokovic introduced a new, serving action that got many on social media discussing it.
Six months later, Novak Djokovic is back on a tennis court — and with a new, weirder serve motion. pic.twitter.com/uF3DpJGhF7
— Gaspar Ribeiro Lança (@gasparlanca) January 10, 2018
Djokovic won the first set in just 21 minutes before Thiem offered a little more resistance in the second. Djokovic prevailed though, and the current World No.14 could not hide his delight in post-match interviews.
Djokovic: “It was a great start, it feels really good to be back on the court. I can’t stop laughing outside and inside. It’s a great joy, I love this sport, it’s a great passion of mine so I missed it. I wasn’t that nervous, although I had that match play attitude … I wanted to be back on court, unfortunately the elbow wouldn’t let me last week.”
Djokovic also reflected on his lengthy injury absence: “This has been a tough period for me, obviously injury is the greatest enemy a professional athlete can have. You can’t do anything about it except try to recover as quickly as you can. The Australian Open is the big one, it’s the one I wanted to be ready for. It’s a great start.”
Djokovic was not the only attraction on court on Wednesday at the Kooyong Classic. Home favourite Matthew Ebden managed to delight the crowd as he stunned 2017 Wimbledon finalist Marin Cilic 6-7, 6-4, 7-5.
Ebden: “I think I’ve beaten someone who was seven or eight before so it’s maybe my biggest win rankings wise,He’s (Cilic) been a great player, top five or 10 for a long time, so it’s great for me to step up to that level.”
