Djokovic Eases Into Round Three At Wimbledon
Written 4 months ago by Will O'Callaghan
Wimbledon’s blazing afternoon sun caused coach Andre Agassi to seek cover but Novak Djokovic was untroubled again as he brushed aside Adam Pavlasek on Court One.
Three-time former champion Djokovic’s first-round match against Martin Klizan was cut short by the Slovakian’s retirement early in the second set on Tuesday, and his second outing proved to be another brisk affair, a 6-2 6-2 6-1 win in one hour and 33 minutes.
Agassi emerged to watch the match without a hat, and had to improvise by draping what looked like a tracksuit top over his bald head to stave off the threat of sunburn. He sat in a box at courtside alongside a short-term addition to Djokovic’s team, the former top-10 player Mario Ancic whose regular day job is as an investment banker on Wall Street.
Djokovic was taking on plenty of water during each short break between games as the heat prompted some in the crowd to raise umbrellas to deflect the sun rays.
But it was clear from the early stages that while the heat was an issue, 22-year-old Czech Pavlasek would not be troubling him unduly, with an immediate break in the opening game establishing a tone for the match that was never challenged.
In May, a downbeat Pavlasek had expressed such concern about the state of his game to Czech media that he said it might take a psychiatrist or psychologist to set him back on track.
His form on the second-tier Challenger Tour this year has been largely awful, so taking on the second seed on a main show court was inevitably too tall an order for the world number 136.
While 30-year-old Djokovic came to Wimbledon on the back of winning the Eastbourne title, Pavlasek came off a very different run-up, having taken part in a low-profile Challenger in Poprad, Slovakia where an exhibition match featured dogs as ball collectors.
He remains perhaps best known as a former boyfriend of Petra Kvitova, the two-time former Wimbledon champion, and followed her out of the championships. Kvitova lost in the second round of the women’s singles on Wednesday evening.
Djokovic moves on to bigger challenges, and more serious tests of his form. A double fault from Pavlasek brought this contest to an end, rather aptly.
“It was a very warm day, very hot day,” Djokovic told the BBC immediately after coming off court.
“It wasn’t easy to play point after point in some long rallies. Midway in the second set we had some long games, but overall from the very beginning I managed to impose my own rhythm and play the game that I needed to play.
“I think I definitely will feel better as days go by. I have been in this particular situation before many times and will try to use the experience knowing what to do on a daily basis to get myself in the right shape, the right state of mind and hopefully the right performance.”
Image – Clive Brunskill/Getty Images Europe
