Second seed Novak Djokovic won his first clay-court match of the season on Wednesday at the Gonet Geneva Open, where he defeated Marton Fucsovics in straight sets, 6-2, 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals at the ATP 250 event.
The Serbian star was in control throughout the 75-minute contest. He dominated the baseline exchanges with impressive groundstrokes and powerful serve. Novak did not face a break point against the Hungarian, improving to a perfect 6-0 record in the pair’s ATP H2H series.
“My first win this season on clay,” said Djokovic. “It is great to break the ice in a way. It is a very demanding surface. We all know how tricky it is to play on clay, compared to the other surfaces, you always have to expect an extra ball, an extra shot. Here, a bit more altitude, so it helps if you have a good serve. Today I think that was my strongest shot. I had a high percentage of first serves, a lot of free points on the first serve when I needed, to get out of trouble. I think it makes life on the court a bit easier, so I am very glad to be able to play the best tennis when needed. All the way through, I was quite focused and pleased with the level of tennis, so hopefully that can continue tomorrow.”
Match stats: aces (4-0), double faults (1-0), winners (22-11), unforced errors (15-23), total points won (64-37).
Nole is chasing his 100th tour-level title in Geneva, preparing for the next week’s Roland Garros. He will next face eighth-seeded Italian Matteo Arnaldi (Thursday at 18:00 CET) to whom he fell in Madrid Masters opener four weeks ago.
Photo: Profimedia
