Novak Djokovic of Serbia makes a return to Ukrainian Sergiy Stakhovsky during their second round match at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha yesterday. Djokovic won 6-2, 6-1. Pictures: Jayan Orma
By Mikhil Bhat/Doha
World number one Novak Djokovic could not be kept on the court for more than an hour second day on the trot. Yesterday, the Serbian breezed past Ukrainian Sergiy Stakhovsky 6-2 6-1 to reach the Qatar ExxonMobil Open quarter-finals.
Interestingly, today, Doha’s Khalifa International Tennis and Squash Complex will witness a Novak Djokovic-Rafael Nadal encounter of a different kind. Like they have only met once before.
Djokovic, along with his partner Filip Krajinovic, will take on Nadal and his Argentine partner Juan Monaco in the doubles semi-final today.
After beating Stakhovsky, the Serbian pair of Djokovic-Krajinovic beat third seed Colombian pair of Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah 6-3 7-5 to reach the last four. Nadal and Monaco got past the pair of Germany’s Benjamin Becker and New Zealand’s Artem Sitak 2-6 6-3 10-6.
“It’s going to be interesting to play against Rafa in doubles, which is not common for us, but I look forward to that. Playing him in singles so many times, over 40 times, I think we played maybe once in doubles against each other and once together as well in Toronto,” said Djokovic, who faced Nadal in a doubles match only once -- a 2009 match in Montreal Masters. Djokovic and his Serbian partner Dusan Vemic had lost to Nadal and Spain’s Francisco Roig 5-7 4-6 then.
Earlier in his singles match, Djokovic got into the business of breakpoints in the fourth game of the first set, taking a 3-1 lead with a nice little forehand volley for a winner.
A break down, Stakhovsky, who celebrated his 29th birthday with a win over Qatari wildcard Jabor Mohamed Ali Mutawa on Tuesday, had his best chance of a break in the seventh game.
Djokovic, who was broken in the first set on Tuesday against compatriot Dusan Lajovic, was faced saving a break point thrice. This time, however, he closed out the game before breaking Stakhovsky in the next for the set.
In the second set, the Ukrainian, who had never won against Djokovic in their previous three meetings, could not trouble the 2014 Wimbledon champion with break points. And so, Djokovic marched ahead for a quarter-final tie against Croatian seventh seed Ivo Karlovic.
Karlovic served 19 aces on his way to a 7-6 (3) 6-3 win over Georgian qualifier Nikoloz Basilashvili.
The 22-year-old Georgian had not dropped a set in the tournament (including qualifiers) till yesterday and had won his first ATP Tour main draw match on Tuesday, beating former world number eight Mikhail Youzhny of Russia 7-5 6-2.
Yesterday, he showed promise in the first set saving three break points against the big-serving 6’ 11” Croat but eventually ran out of steam.
Asked if he enjoys playing Karlovic, the 27-year-old world number one said, “Honestly, I’m yet to meet a player who enjoys playing him. It’s a big challenge. He is one of the best servers ever to play the game. I’m definitely going to try to get some good sleep so my reaction tomorrow is quick, because I’m going to need that, definitely.”
Czech third seed Tomas Berdych posted his second consecutive straight set win in Doha with a 6-1 6-2 victory over Slovenian qualifier Blaz Kavcic.
Kavcic, unlike his 7-6 6-4 win against Argentine veteran Juan Monaco, just couldn’t deal with early ball-hitting of Berdych. The Slovenian 27-year-old especially faced trouble with his second serve, even as Berdych notched up winners from the baseline and at the net.
“I am happy with the way I handled the match today,” Berdych, who had made his debut in Doha last year, losing to Karlovic in the first round, said after the match yesterday.
“I went through in two sets today. Things that we set up before the match, they worked pretty well, and it’s another step this week,” the world number 7 said.
Spanish fourth seed David Ferrer followed up his not-so-comfortable three-set win over Dutchman Thiemo de Bakker with a straightforward 6-3 6-2 victory over compatriot Fernando Verdasco.
This was Ferrer’s eighth straight win over Verdasco with the last one in Paris Masters last year.
Ferrer will now play Germany’s Dustin Brown in the opening quarterfinal today. Brown beat fellow German Jan-Lennard Struff 7-6 (9) 6-4 yesterday.
Even though Brown, nicknamed Dreddy courtesy is long dreadlocks, made it to the main draw after Austria’s Dominic Thiem pulled out due to illness, Ferrer is not lackadaisical about his opponent.
“Brown, he’s unpredictable. He’s anarchic player, no?” the world number 10 said yesterday.
“He has a good serve and volley, so I will have to be very focused on all the points. I have to be consistent with my first serve, because with my second, he will be able to put a lot of pressure.”
Meanwhile, Rafael Nadal-beater Michael Berrer went down against Croatian Ivan Dodig 7-6 (1) 6-2. The 34-year-old German had won the biggest game of his life on Tuesday, but after being able to force a tiebreak in the first set, Dodig pretty much breezed through to the next round.
Dodig will play Italy’s Andreas Seppi, who beat Brazil’s Joao Souza 7-5 6-2, in the quarter-finals today.
Results
Singles (Round 2)
3-Tomas Berdych (CZE) beat Blaz Kavcic (SLO) 6-1 6-2; 1-Novak Djokovic (SRB) beat Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 6-2 6-1; 7-Ivo Karlovic (CRO) beat Q-Nikoloz Basilashvili (GEO) 7-6 (3) 6-3; 4-David Ferrer (ESP) beat Fernando Verdasco (ESP) 6-3 6-2; Ivan Dodig (CRO) beat Q-Michael Berrer (GER) 7-6 (1) 6-2 Dustin Brown (GER) beat Jan-Lennard Struff (GER) 7-6 (9) 6-4; Andreas Seppi (ITA) beat Joao Souza (BRA) 7-5 6-2; 5-Richard Gasquet (FRA) beat Simone Bolelli (ITA) 6-3 6-2
Doubles (Quarter-finals)
Juan Monaco (ARG) and Rafael Nadal (ESP) beat Benjamin Becker (GER) and Artem Sitak (NZL) 2-6 6-3 10-6; David Marrero (ESP) and Fernando Verdasco (ESP) beat Dominic Inglot (GBR) and Florin Mergea (ROU) 3-6 6-3 10-5; Julian Knowle (AUT) and Philipp Oswald (AUT) beat Lukas Rosol (CZE) and Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 6-3 7-5; WC-Novak Djokovic (SRB) and Filip Krajinovic (SRB) beat 3-Juan Sebastian Cabal (COL) and Robert Farah 6-3 7-5
ORDER OF PLAY
Center Court (Start at 3:30pm)
4-David Ferrer (ESP) vs Dustin Brown (GER); 1-Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs 7-Ivo Karlovic (CRO); 5-Richard Gasquet (FRA) vs 3-Tomas Berdych (CZE); Andreas Seppi (ITA) vs Ivan Dodig (CRO)
Court 1 (Start at 5pm)
David Marrero (ESP) and Fernando Verdasco (ESP) vs Julian Knowle (AUT) and Philipp Oswald (AUT); Juan Monaco (ARG) and Rafael Nadal (ESP) vs
WC-Novak Djokovic (SRB) and Filip
Krajinovic (SRB)
BELOW:
Tomas Berdych beat Blaz Kavcic