Novak Djokovic Survives The First Round Scare At The Australian Open

Novak Djokovic puts away 18 year old Croatian qualifier Dino Prizmic after a tough four sets 6-2, 6(5)-7, 6-3, 6-4 in 4 hours to advance to the second round. This was the longest ever first-round match at a Grand Slam for Novak Djokovic. The young Croatian simply did not back down even when losing, forcing the defending champion to put out his best for the victory.

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The defending champ had nothing but praises for the young gun during the on-court interview. Djokovic complimented Prizmic for playing impressively throughout the whole match even when he was 4-0 down in the fourth set, displaying immense mentality and maturity on the court. The scoreline does not reflect how well the world no. 178 Prizmic actually played, and Djokovic believed that the tennis world would be seeing more of the Croatian.

Djokovic inches closer to his 25th Grand Slam Title and 11th Australian Open title as he advances into the second round where he will face either Australian Alexei Popyrin or South African Marc Polmans. The top seed remains undefeated at the event since last losing to South Korean Hyun Chung in 2018.