Novak Djokovic Cruised Past Radu Albot To Start His Title Defence At The US Open

The freshly-crowned Olympic Gold Medalist Novak Djokovic cruised past qualifier Radu Albot in straight sets 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 in two hours and 7 minutes in the opening round at the US Open. The 24 time Grand Slam champion won his first hard court match since losing to Luca Nardi at Indian Wells earlier this year.

© US Open

This match was the first meeting between 37 year old Djokovic and 34 year old Albot, which is very unusual as both players have been on tour for a fair amount of time. Not the best performance from the Serbian, especially on his first serve as his percentage sat in the 40s throughout the match. If no improvement is made on that aspect of his game, he could easily get broken facing better players as the tournament progresses.

It was a good effort by Albot in the match. He was unlucky to draw Djokovic in the opening round after fighting for a spot in the main draw in the qualifying rounds. Djokovic is set to play his compatriot Laslo Djere in the second round. 

Djokovic has now won a record-breaking 78 matches on the Arthur Ashe Stadium. He is looking to defend and win the US Open for the 5th time to add another Grand Slam title. Djokovic is also bidding to become the first player since Roger Federer in 2008 to win back to back US Open titles.