Novak Djokovic, the Serbian tennis superstar, approached his US Open first-round match against Radu Albot with a sense of purpose and determination. Djokovic jokingly stated before the match that he was on a mission to “avenge” his brothers, who had both fallen to Albot in previous encounters.
Despite Djokovic being 37 years old and Albot, a former world No. 39, being 34, the two had never crossed paths on the Tour before. However, when they finally met on Monday evening in New York, it was Djokovic who emerged victorious with a dominant 6-2 6-2 6-4 win.
While Albot may have succumbed to the defending US Open champion, he had managed to defeat Djokovic’s younger brothers in the past. Albot had secured wins over Marko Djokovic in the 2012 Sarajevo Challenger and Djordje Djokovic in the 2013 Bergamo Challenger.
“I’ve done my homework – actually both of my younger brothers faced him and they both lost to him, so hopefully I can avenge my brothers tonight (laughs),” Djokovic remarked before stepping onto the court.
In the early stages of the match, Albot managed to take a 2-1 lead. However, Djokovic quickly shifted gears and proceeded to win the next five games, ultimately claiming the first set in an impressive fashion.
As the second set began, Djokovic faced a minor setback as he lost an early break. Nevertheless, he remained composed and broke Albot twice more to comfortably secure a two-set lead.
