NEW YORK: Novak Djokovic is on his way. An early wobble notwithstanding, the world No. 1, dressed in shades of blue for the night session on the Arthur Ashe court, kicked ahead to take his first steps towards epoch-defining history.
The 34-year-old had 55 winners in his 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-1 over the 18-year-old Holger Vitus Nodskov Rune, whose name like his play has many parts. But this is not about the Dane, as delightful as he was.
Djokovic is the man and the destination is the calendar Grand Slam.
The first set against the 145th-ranked teen, who walked onto court with an IKEA bag that contained his energy drinks and bananas, was done in 26-minutes. But Rune, of the roaring power, pounded his way into the contest, breaking at love in the second game of the second set, closing with a forehand down-the-line winner that sparked the stands. The Dane went ahead 3-0 before Djokovic levelled at four-all. The qualifier, flashing intent, then came through in the tie-break.
As if on cue, the crowd crashed the gates of the contest, rooting for Rune, egging him on. The voice and the energy, heavy and a trifle harsh perhaps on the man on a warpath to history, charged the glitter of the New York skyline. If it confined Djokovic, it wasn't for more than a set. He steadied the ship and steeled the nerve and readied for what he's likely to face again and again. The fandom as much as the fella across the net.
"It's the loudest and most entertaining stadium we have in our sport," Djokovic said, a hint of regret in his voice. "You wish to have the crowd behind you, but it's not always possible. I didn't know what they were chanting. I thought they were booing. It was not an ideal atmosphere for me. But I've been in these particular atmospheres before, I knew how to handle it."
There were more than 50,000 people at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Centre on Tuesday, an engaging milieu for a spot the mask contest. That overwhelming percentage was the wave pushing for Rune, who couldn't take the first-round match any further, constrained as he was by cramps.
For Djokovic, defaulted from the tournament last year, when he inadvertently directed a ball at a line judge, the reprieve is not in that the human element has been replaced by an automated system this time round. The Serb's mental might -- which fluxed most recently in the Tokyo Olympics when he fell apart in his last two outings to finish without a medal -- will need to keep like it did on Tuesday.
"When you're on the court there are some unpredictable things that can happen, whether it's with your opponent, the sensations that you have or the crowd around. You go through a roller coaster of emotions on the court," Djokovic said. "Every time I lose that concentration, I try to bring my attention back to the moment, which I think is helped by conscious breathing."
He demonstrated that in his first-round outing that won him a match-up with another difficult name -- Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor, the world No.121.
Meanwhile, American qualifier Maxime Cressy served and volleyed his way back from two-sets down, winning 46 of 70 points when rushing the net, to score a 5-7, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 7-6 (7) win over the ninth-seeded Pablo Carreño Busta.
In other first round matches, fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev extended his winning streak to 12 matches when he moved past Sam Querrey 6-4, 7-5, 6-2. Top-seeded Ashleigh Barty overcame a late-match wobble to score a 6-1, 7-6 (7) win over Vera Zvonareva.
Serbia's Olga Danilovic pulled out of her US Open second-round clash against World No.3 Naomi Osaka citing 'medical reasons'.
