Novak Djokovic came from a set down to beat Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 5-7, 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 and book his spot in the second round of the French Open on Sunday.
The 24-time major champion Djokovic is seeking to win a fourth Roland Garros crown, which would send him beyond Margaret Court as the player with the most Grand Slam titles in the history of the sport.
“His service is practically impossible to see… Only once or twice in my career (have I seen a serve like it),” Djokovic said on-court of his big-serving opponent.
It was a first victory on the red dirt of the season for the 39-year-old after he skipped the vast majority of the clay-court swing due to a shoulder issue.
Djokovic showed his rustiness by blinking first in the opening set as Mpetshi Perricard got the Parisian crowd on their feet with a break of serve in the 11th game, before holding comfortably to get his nose in front.
Djokovic managed to engineer his first two break points of the match in the sixth game of the second frame but failed to convert as the 22-year-old roared back to ensure the set stayed level at 3-3.
But the Serb, one of tennis’ all-time great returners, was starting to get the measure of the 2.01-metre Mpetshi Perricard’s bullet serve and eventually got the break he so desperately craved in the 12th game of the second set to level the match.
When Mpetshi Perricard sent wide a stretched forehand after chasing down a Djokovic drop shot, it was the first break point converted by the former world number one out of 10 across the set.
With his eye now firmly in, Djokovic wasted no time in getting ahead in the third frame as he broke the former world number 29 in the second game to race into a 3-0 lead.
The unrelenting Djokovic then won three of the next four games to claim a rapid-fire third set.
The pair exchanged breaks right at the start of the fourth set before the match settled back into its earlier ebb and flow.
Djokovic struck again to get 4-3 ahead, this time serving out to book his spot in the round of 64, where he will face another Frenchman, Valentin Royer.
Source: Khaleej Times