Djokovic Advances to Third Round Amid Retirement of Opponent

Novak Djokovic, the defending champion, successfully progressed to the third round of the tournament on Wednesday after his opponent, Laslo Djere, retired early in the third set. The match took place in the stadium under the roof, with Djokovic leading 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 at the time of Djere’s retirement.

After the match, Djokovic expressed his disappointment, stating, “It’s not what we want. It’s not what the crowd wants, to see a walkover. But he obviously had an injury that took him out of the Tour for some time, and he is struggling to come back physically to this level.” He acknowledged Djere’s talent, especially in the humid conditions.

Djere managed to hold two break points at 4-2 in the second set, which could have allowed him to serve for the set had he converted. Unfortunately for Djere, he did not win another game after that point and called for a medical timeout before serving at 4-5, receiving treatment for an abdominal injury.

Throughout the match, Djokovic struggled with his first serve, making only 47 percent of his attempts. This percentage mirrored his performance from the first round. After securing the opening set by breaking Djere at 5-4, Djokovic took a tablet but did not opt for a medical timeout.

Both players exhibited signs of fatigue from lengthy rallies in challenging conditions. Over two hours and 16 minutes, Djokovic committed 26 unforced errors and converted four out of ten break points.

With this victory, Djokovic has reached a significant milestone, becoming the first male player to achieve 90 wins at all four major tournaments. He is now eight matches shy of tying the record for the most match wins overall.

This encounter marked the second consecutive year Djokovic faced Djere at the Flushing Meadows. Last year, Djokovic overcame a two-set deficit against Djere to claim the trophy, with Djere being the only player to take a set from Djokovic during that championship.

In the next round, Djokovic is set to compete against Alexei Popyrin, whom he has defeated in both previous encounters this year, at the Australian Open and in Montreal, with both matches going to four sets. As Djokovic aims for a third victory over Popyrin, he holds an undefeated 3-0 lead in their ATP Head2Head series.

Currently, Djokovic is 31-7 on the season and is pursuing his 25th major title and 100th tour-level title. Should he secure his fifth championship, he would surpass Margaret Court to become the player with the most singles titles in Grand Slam history.