First seed Djokovic faced Quentin Halys in the second round of the Adelaide-based tournament. He won the match in straight sets as his traveling fans from Serbia jumped in joy. After the match, he took time to greet his fans as he signed autographs and clicked pictures with them.
The Adelaide international’s Instagram handle shared a clip of the Serb spending time with the fans.
The Serb went on to re-share the same on social media and expressed gratitude towards his fans with heart and prayer hand emojis.
The 35-year-old also shared a video of his Serbian supporters waving his nation’s flag and chanting “Idemo Nole,” which translates to “Let’s go Nole.” He thanked the fans for their heartwarming gesture.
The former World No. 1 had to fight his way into the match on Thursday after suffering an early setback in the opening set. Halys gave the Serb a run for his money as he forced the 21-time Grand Slam champion into a tie-break in both sets. However, the Serb’s experience helped him tackle the Frenchman during the nervy moments of the match as he clinched both sets at the tail end to win 7-6(3), 7-6(5) and earned qualification into the quarterfinals.
Novak Djokovic will face Denis Shapovalov in the quarterfinals of the Adelaide International 1
Novak Djokovic will face off against Denis Shapovalov in the quarterfinals of the Adelaide International 1 as the Serb prepares for his first real test in 2023.
The 21-time Grand Slam winner has a 100 percent win record against Shapavalov as their current head-to-head record stands at 7-0. However, the Canadian has been impressive off-late, particularly with his powerful forehand strokes, and can prove to be a tough nut to crack when the two meet on Friday.
The last meeting between the two came in the semifinals of the 2021 Wimbledon where the Serb won the match 7-6 (3), 7-5, 7-5.
Conveying his thoughts on the quarterfinals match against Shapavalov on Friday during a press conference, the former World No. 1 marked respect for his opponent, praising the Canadian’s all-round game.
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