Novak Djokovic made a successful return to the U.S. Open by storming previous Frenchman Alexandre Muller 6-0 6-2 6-3 on Monday to reclaim the world primary rating and take step one in the direction of matching Margaret Court’s document haul of 24 Grand Slams.
ONE WIN DOWN, NUMBER 1️⃣ SECURED.
Novak Djokovic assured himself a return to the highest of the world rankings 📈 with a 6-0, 6-2, 6-3 win over Alexandre Muller on the #USOpen.@DjokerNole has already spent a document 389 weeks atop the ATP tour. 😳
— TENNIS (@Tennis) August 29, 2023
Unable to play finally 12 months’s occasion as a result of being unvaccinated towards COVID-19, Djokovic had not been seen on the Flushing Meadows onerous courts since his loss to Daniil Medvedev within the 2021 last. And followers let the 36-year-old know that they had missed him, showering the Serb with applause as he emerged from the tunnel onto Arthur Ashe Stadium court docket. It was clear that the three-time champion had missed them in addition to he embraced the cheers of a document crowd of over 30,000 that included former-U.S. President Barack Obama and his spouse Michelle.
Arriving in New York on the again of an absorbing win over his younger rival Carlos Alcaraz within the Cincinnati Open last, an in-form Djokovic confirmed the 84th ranked Muller no mercy in what was his U.S. Open foremost draw debut.
Firing on all cylinders, Djokovic broke the overwhelmed Frenchman to open the match and by no means took his foot off the fuel, closing out the primary set in 23 minutes with a thundering ace.
Djokovic broke Muller for a fourth time to open the second set and went 2-0 up earlier than his opponent held serve for the primary time, elevating each fingers in triumph as the group roared.
But the cheers could be few and much between as Djokovic closed out the second with a depraved forehand.
Muller confirmed extra ambition within the third, taking the set to 3-3 earlier than Djokovic took management by breaking the Frenchman twice on the best way to closing out the match.
While the U.S. Open has simply bought underway, Djokovic’s win ensures he’ll nudge Alcaraz out of high spot when the world rankings are up to date on Sept. 11.
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Alcaraz, who beat Djokovic in an epic Wimbledon last in July, opens his account on Tuesday towards Germany’s Dominik Koepfer.
The path to a tenth U.S. Open last and a doable mouthwatering showdown with Alcaraz will get more durable however Djokovic had one impediment faraway from his facet of the draw when Danish fourth seed Holger Rune was upset 6-3 4-6 6-3 6-2 by Spanish clay court docket specialist Roberto Carballes Baena.
Next up for quantity two seed Djokovic is Spain’s Bernabe Zapata Miralles, who was a straight units winner over American Ethan Quinn.
