Former world number one Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open preparations suffered a blow Friday as he was bundled out of the Brisbane International by towering American Reilly Opelka.
Novak Djokovic was knocked out of the Brisbane International by Reilly Opelka. As a result, he had to cancel his Australian Open plans. In the match against Novak Djokovic, he won 7-6 and then 6-3. His height of 2.11 meters or 6 feet 11 inches helped him take an edge over the 24 time grand slam winner. Although Novak Djokovic is older than 37, he mentioned before the tournament that he has the ability to qualify above the younger players. However, his opponent Opelka, who used to be number 17 in the world, ruled over him for the rest of the match. The match ended after 1 hour and 40 minutes with a score of 6-3 in the final set.
The last time Opelka had competed was in 2022. He was sidelined for two years due to injuries. However, he resumed playing last year in July.
His serve was dominant and resulted in 16 aces, which helped him avoid any serious pressure throughout the match.
“To me, this man is the most impactful player in history,” said Novak Djokovic in an interview.
He had previously stated that coming in with nothing to lose boosted his confidence and helped him take risks. “The truth is you’re playing freely when you have nothing to lose, that way you get a better chance to win to begin with,” he said.
“It’s hard for him, because you get guys like me who are will to take all chances – and on days such as this, things turn out for me, and so it did.”
Opelka is now up against another big server in the semi-finals, the burgeoning French talent Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who made it 75 aces in three matches, beating Czech Jakub Mensik 7-5, 7-6 (7/5).
Sabalenka through
In the other semi-final, defending champion and second seed Grigor Dimitrov will face another Czech, Jiri Lehecka.
Aryna Sabalenka, the world top most ranked player, in the women’s semi-finals, managed to defeat a Czech Republic player Marie Bouzkova in straight sets.
Having won the last two editions of the Australian Grand Slam, the Czech representative was beaten 6-3, 6-4 in a battle that lasted 1hr 45mins. Sabalenka was the champion, and she continues her dominance.
She currently plays Mirra Andreeva, a Russian young player who defeated Ons Jabeur, from Tunisia, winning 6-4, 7-6 (7/2).
Andreeva, who is 17 years old, displayed her enormous potential by beating the former world number two Jabeur in a high-quality match.
Jabeur, who is ranked second at Wimbledon in 2022, has not competed since August owing to a shoulder injury.
During the 2023 French Open Andreeva used her talent to overcome the complex shot making of Jabeur, breaking her once in the first set, and then, after going two breaks down in her own serve in the second set, Andreeva forced a tiebreak.
Andreeva finished all in all, 90 minutes of the match after sailing through the tiebreak.
”It was a mental fight for me to discuss certain things in my head because we all know she is very good at playing those games, the drop shots, the slices, and that’s the push that we’re looking for” Andreeva noted.
The second women’s semi-final is expected to feature Russian qualifier Polina Kudermetova against Anhelina Kalinina of Ukraine.
The Australian Open will commence on January 12.
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The Australian Open seems to be creeping up on the Serbian superstar, and it could prove to be quite a daunting task for him considering that he embarrassed himself so badly at the Aussie Open last year. However, leading up to the much anticipated major, the 37 year old tennis sensation suffered yet another embarrassing defeat, this time at the hands of American Reilly Opelka 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 during the Brisbane International.
Right off the bat, reaching that towering height of 2.11peers greater force for ex number one. The toll since the two grand slams and the Wimbledon semis Novak Djokovic competed in took a greater toll than anticipated however, expectations were quite low after semestre missed on the preceding tour. The hip and wrist surgery that caused the long recovery seemed worth it for him now considering he outclassed one of the greatest players in a little over one hour and forty minutes.
“I can’t believe I’ve gone two weeks without feeling pain, thanks to surgeries” the tennis superstar claimed, he did record a staggering sixteen aces but faced a little over a break point. The tournament did serve as a warm up to the Australian Open starting from January 12 up until January 22, where fans will eagerly wait what smack talker would say next.
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