Top seed Novak Djokovic has raced to his 10th consecutive US Open quarter-final after defeating Kyle Edmund 6-2, 6-1, 6-4, in under two hours.
Playing under the stars on the Arthur Ashe stadium on Sunday night, the world No.1 was particularly impressive on his first serve, dropping only seven points during the first two sets. Djokovic’s only test occurred during the third set when he was broken two consecutive times by the South African-born Brit, but on both occasions he retrieved the break immediately to underline his dominance against the youngster.
“I was pleased. Very pleased, except a little drop in the level in the third set, midway through the third set. Other than that, everything was great.” The defending champion said about his fourth round triumph.
“So it’s good to play an entire match, you know, considering I had not much time spent on the court in the last couple rounds.”
Producing 3 aces and 24 winners, Djokovic has once again reminded the world that he is still the man to beat in New York, despite enduring a lacklustre summer. There were concerns about the Serbian’s injury status when he received a medical time out during the match, however, a confident Djokovic have since dismissed the significance of it.
“No, it was good. It was good. Everything was fine.” He responded when asked about his elbow.
“I needed a little bit of massage. I like Clay. That was a little deal we had before the match.” He later joked.
Despite producing a one-sided win over Edmund, Djokovic has predicted a promising future for the Brit. Prior to Edmund’s loss, he has defeated Richard Gasquet and John Isner at the tournament.
“Generally, he has played a good tournament. He beat Gasquet; he beat Isner. For someone his age, he’s showing mental maturity, no doubt. He’s getting things together.” Djokovic said on Edmund.
“I am sure we are going to see more of him in the future.”
Next up for Djokovic will be a Tuesday meeting with France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, a player he dismissed in straight sets earlier this year. Tsonga progressed to the last eight after downing Jack Sock in four sets. The upcoming encounter will be a tough one for the Frenchman, but he is still confident that he can trouble the Serbian.
“For me, it’s to always play the right shot, don’t give him too many free points.” He said about his match tactics. “Yeah, that’s the most important for me. Anyway, I will play my game. I will be aggressive, as always.”
“The most important for me is to stay focused on what I have to do and play the right shot.”
Since the 2010 Davis Cup final, Djokovic has a stunning 52-1 winning record against French players. His sole loss was to Tsonga at the 2014 Canadian Masters.
