Australian Open: Djokovic Wins Generational Clash Over Prizmic

Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic (photo: Australian Open video)

MELBOURNE/WASHINGTON, January 14, 2024 (by Michael Dickens)

World No. 1 and defending champion Novak Djokovic will long remember the opening match in his bid to win a record-extending 11th Australian Open crown. That’s because he was pushed for four hours and one minute by 18-year-old Dino Prizmic of Croatia, the 2023 French Open junior champion, before emerging with a 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-4 victory on Rod Laver Arena Sunday night. It was the longest first-round match of Djokovic’s storied career.

With the victory, Djokovic maintained an unblemished win-loss record (25-0) against qualifiers at majors.

One thing’s for sure: the 178th-ranked Prizmic, a native of Split, made a name for himself on this arena stage in his very first Grand Slam main-draw appearance against the 36-year-old Djokovic, a 24-time major champion and 10-time Australian Open titlist. The Serbian needed six match points to put away the Croatian teenager, who once led 3-2 and 2as up a break in the third set.

“He deserved every applause, every credit that he got tonight,” Djokovic said in his on-court remarks, after Prizmic walked off the court to a standing ovation. “He’s an amazing player, so mature for his age and he handled himself on the court incredibly well.

“This is his moment, honestly. It could easily have been his match as well. He was a break up in the third, he fought even though he was 0-4 and a break point down [in the fourth set]. He fought. He showed great mentality and resilience. He really made me run for my money tonight.”

Indeed, Djokovic, who debuted in Melbourne in 2005 — almost seven months before Primzic was born — hit 40 winners, including nine aces. He has now won 29 straight matches at the Australian Open and improved his career win-loss record to 90-8. Next, he will face an Australian, either No. 43 Alexei Popyrin or 156th-ranked wild card Marc Polmans.

Reflecting on the night during his post-match news conference, Djokovic said:  “I had an amazing opponent tonight. For an 18-year-old, he played so maturely and confidently on the court, fighting through, not giving up even when he was four down in the fourth set. Impressed with his mentality, with his approach, with his game. I hear a lot of positive stories about his discipline, his dedication to everyday routines that are making him so physically strong already at 18 and successful.

“Yeah, if he continues this way, he’s going to have a very bright career ahead of him, no doubt.”

Like Swiatek, Sabalenka’s bakery is open for business, too!

Defending women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus made quick work of 172nd-ranked German qualifier Ella Seidel, winning by a bagel and a breadstick score of 6-0, 6-1, in just 54 minutes on Rod Laver Arena, to close out Opening Night play after midnight.

According to the WTA website, it’s just the third time in the Open Era that the women’s defending champion at the AO has won an opening set with a 6-0 score. Margaret Court in 1970 and Virginia Wade in 1973 are the others to achieve the feat.

With the victory, the No. 2 seed Sabalenka is the player with the most hard-court women’s singles Grand Slam wins over the last four seasons with 30.

Rublev, Fritz both pushed to the brink

World No. 5 Andrey Rublev survived a huge scare from Brazil’s heavy-hitting Thiago Seyboth Wild, ranked 78th, in their first head-to-head clash. The No. 5 seed held on to win, 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 7-6 (6), in three hours and 43 minutes on Margaret Court Arena. The victory enabled the 26-year-old Russian to reach the Melbourne second round for the seventh time in eight appearances.

Rublev was unable to convert four match points on Seyboth Wild’s serve at 5-6 in the final set, including three from 0-40. Fortunately, he was able to reset during the decisive tie-break. Rublev rallied from 2-5 to eventually win on his fifth match point. Rublev, who finished with 21 aces and 88 winners to 68 winners for Seyboth Wild, collapsed to the ground upon winning.

“I started to have this feeling for sure it’s going to happen to me,” said Rublev, thinking back to Seyboth Wild’s upset of his close friend, fellow Russian Daniil Medvedev, at last year’s Roland Garros. “Almost all the fifth set, every game at least one or two times I was thinking about what happened to Daniil because the fifth set I was inside completely panicking. But still I was serving really well on the fifth set. The serve helped me a lot because all the fifth set I think he didn’t have any chances. All the games were 40-15 or 40-0. The only thing that helped me a lot.”

Meanwhile, World No. 12 Taylor Fritz of the United States came from behind after receiving treatment early on after rolling his left ankle and beat Argentina’s Facundo Diaz Acosta, 4-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-2, 6-4, on John Cain Arena to reach the second round. Fritz broke his 93rd-ranked opponent at love in the final game and is now 9-11 lifetime in five-set matches.

“It was a really crazy match, I wasn’t fully ready for that,” Fritz said. “I’m happy now they put me on a Sunday start because I will need two days off now to rest after a really, really physical match.”

Asked about his injured ankle, Fritz said: “It was one of those when I rolled it, I heard it pop and it hurt pretty bad at first. Sometimes you just need a minute but this one I definitely needed to get it taped up.”

Berrettini withdraws with foot injury

Italy’s Matteo Berrettini withdrew on the eve his scheduled first-round match against 2023 Australian Open finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece because of foot injury. It’s yet another setback for the 2021 Wimbledon runner-up, who was a 2022 AO semifinalist.

Berrettini, who was due to play the No. 7 seed Tsitsipas on Rod Laver Arena Monday afternoon, has been replaced in the draw by 130th-ranked lucky loser Zizou Bergs of Belgium.

“Matteo Berrettini has withdrawn from the Australian Open with a right foot injury,” AO tournament organizers said in a statement. “Wishing you a quick recovery.”

Berrettini has not competed since last year’s U.S. Open, where he retired in the second round with an ankle injury. He played just 23 matches last season, going 12-11, and now has missed four of the last nine majors.

Double joy for Argentines

A pair of seeded Argentines, No. 22 Francisco Cerundolo and No. 26 Sebastian Baez, both won. Cerundolo beat 257th-ranked Australian qualifier Dane Sweeny, playing in his first major, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2, on John Cain Arena, while Baez advanced over 54th-ranked American J.J. Wolf by retirement on Court 2, leading 3-6, 6-2, 6-3, 3-0.

A pair of teenagers shine on Opening Day

Two 16-year-old players advanced to the second round. First, 110th-ranked qualifier Brenda Fruhvirtova of the Czech Republic earned her first Grand Slam win by overcoming No. 66 Anna Bogdan of Romania, 2-6, 6-4, 6-3, on Court 17. Next, she will oppose defending champion Aryna Sabalenka.

“It will be a great experience no matter who wins,” Fruhvirtova said, “but I’m really looking forward to the next round, and hopefully I will get some big court or bigger one than today.”

Second, No. 180 Alina Korneeva of Russia – the Australian Open junior champion last year and a main-draw qualifier this year – rallied to beat No. 53 Sara Sorribes Tormo of Spain, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2. It’s the first time two 16-year-olds have won in a women’s singles first round at a Grand Slam since 2007 at Wimbledon by Caroline Wozniacki and Tamira Paszek.

“I think everybody, it doesn’t matter what age you are, you try to just to do everything on the court that you can, on the match, and that’s all,” Korneeva told reporters afterward. “Of course, if you do everything on the court and if you do everything on the practice, the result will be, and that’s all.

“It doesn’t matter what age you are.”

Around Melbourne Park

Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki, who won her only Grand Slam title in Melbourne in 2018, advanced after No. 20 seed Magda Linette of Poland was forced to retire due to an injury. Playing in her first AO match since 2020, Wozniacki led 6-2, 2-0 before Linette retired from the opening-round contest after 55 minutes.

“It’s definitely not the way you want to win,” Wozniacki said. “You want to see your opponent be healthy.

“But I saw she tweaked her leg at one point there late in the first set. I wasn’t sure what was happening. Then I just tried to keep my head cool.”

Australia’s 71st-ranked Christopher O’Connell won a fifth-set tiebreaker to defeat No. 88 Cristian Garin of Chile, 3-6, 7-5, 4-6, 6-1, 7-5,  in four hours and 21 minutes.

In the longest match of the day, No. 89 Daniel Elahi Galan of Colombia and fought off the challenge of 112th-ranked Australian wild card Jason Kubler, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 (3), 4-6, 7-6 (8), in four hours and 59 minutes on Kia Arena.

Sunday’s Australian Open results

Monday’s Australian Open order of play

By the numbers

Opening Day attendance at Australian Open 2024 reached 87,705 fans. The day session drew 58,623 to Melbourne Park and there were 29,082 spectators on hand for the first night session.

“Quotable …”

“I’m really happy that I was able to win the match because it’s not easy to go through. When you are losing earlier on the slams, it’s tough. So, of course, I’m super happy that I was able to win. …

“I did problems to myself, by myself. Instead of to be in the same focus like I was first two sets and just feel freer and to try to play better and better, I kind of, yeah, relaxed. I started to feel, ‘Okay, I want to finish the match faster. I want to break right now, and I don’t know, yeah.’ The relaxation almost cost me the match because he started later to play unbelievable.”

— No. 5 seed Andrey Rublev of Russia, during his post-match news conference. Rublev went the distance to beat Thiago Seyboth Wild of Brazil, on surviving a first-round scare.

 

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