Novak Djokovic has rediscovered some of his trademark mojo to tame Argentine Tomas Martin Etcheverry in a milestone third-round win at the Australian Open.
The 10-time Open champion has not been bested at Melbourne Park since 2018 but has hardly flown out of the blocks at the start of yet another title defence.
Croatian young gun Dino Prizmic and home favourite Alexei Popyrin both pinched a set from the Serb in the opening rounds as the world No.1 battled an illness and a heckler.
But the 36-year-old was in complete control on Jan. 19 night, smashing 34 winners in his 100th match at Melbourne Park and never facing a break point in a largely routine 6-3 6-3 7-6 (7-2) victory over No.30 seed Etcheverry.
Djokovic becomes the third player in Open history to reach the century mark, behind old foe Roger Federer (117 matches) and American legend Serena Williams (105 matches).
The king of Melbourne Park described Jan. 19’s performance as the best of his tournament so far and was in a reflective mood when asked about the milestone.
“I’ve been blessed to go through a very interesting life journey,” Djokovic said.
“Coming from Serbia during the 90s wasn’t easy for my family, and my parents had to endure a lot of adversity economically and in every sense in order for me to live my dream.”
Infamously deported from Australia in 2022 over a pandemic border row with the federal government, Djokovic said he had not taken a COVID-19 test since coming to Melbourne.
“It’s kind of a regular viral infection that I’ve been through,” he told reporters post-match.
“Now it’s in its last stages and I still have some secret(ion) coming out.”
Etcheverry was far from disgraced but failed to land a blow on Djokovic all night after downing veterans Andy Murray and Gael Monfils to make the third round.
The Serb showed off his generational agility and touch early, losing a grand total of four points on serve to take the first set.
Djokovic broke quickly to take a 2-1 lead in the second but wasn’t without a few outbursts, gesturing at his box and drawing a wry smile from coach Goran Ivanisevic.
He couldn’t hide his annoyance in the third set when handed a code violation for failing to begin his service motion before the clock hit zero.
Keen for an early night, Djokovic produced an inch-perfect drop shot in his final service game to keep the lifting Argentine at bay, calling on his years of experience to close out the tiebreak and settle the match in a little less than two-and-a-half hours.
After stretching his Open winning streak to 31, the 24-time major champion will face No.20 seed Adrian Mannarino in the fourth round after the Frenchman stormed back to beat American Ben Shelton 7-6 (7-4) 1-6 6-7 (2-7) 6-3 6-4.
