Novak Djokovic claimed his second victory in three meetings with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga at the Australian Open, beating the Frenchman 6-3 7-5 6-4 in the second round some 11 years after their first encounter at Melbourne Park, the 2008 final.
The six-time former champion was simply too solid for Tsonga so early in his return to the tour, and while the Frenchman provided a slew of highlight-worthy moments – including a round-the-post winner early in the second set – he was always playing catch-up in the face of a clinical display from the Serbian, who will meet Canada’s Denis Shapovalov in the third round.
“You could feel the tension on the court from the beginning,” admitted Djokovic, who lost to Tsonga in their previous Australian Open encounter, the 2010 quarterfinals. “We were going both through a lot of emotions and trying to keep the focus to start off in the best possible way.
“I thought I played pretty well for a set and a half, then I served for the second set and he played a great game. I managed to re-break in the next game and that’s something that gave me more confidence in the third.”
Tsonga had claimed a set in that first tussle on Rod Laver Arena back in 2008 and has notched six wins over the world No.1 over the years, but there would be no fourth set on Thursday night, let alone an upset.
Back then, Tsonga was a fresh-faced unseeded finalist; now he is a veteran wildcard working his way back from an injury-plagued 2018 against an opponent who can certainly sympathise – once the matter of winning has been dealt with, of course.
“It’s always tough playing Jo,” the world No.1 added. “He’s struggled with injuries in the last 12 months. His ranking doesn’t go him justice at the moment – he’s always been a top player in my eyes, and he’s got plenty of experience playing on the big stage, so it was a pleasure to play against him tonight.”
What began as a Throwback Thursday ended in the early hours of Friday morning after the duo took to court shortly before 10.30pm after a string of lengthy second-round encounters at Rod Laver Arena.
Djokovic was in sterling form from the outset, firing seven aces in the opening set amid a flurry of breaks that left the Serbian in a 4-2 lead that was enough to seal the opener.
But Tsonga was worthy of the tight scoreline. The Frenchman was understandably erratic as he looks to play himself back to top form over the coming weeks, but there were flashes of his brilliant best – not least that show-stopping forehand winner on the run to hold for 1-2 early in the second.
Indeed, he had his chances to take control of the set, blowing break points in the second and sixth games before Djokovic broke for a 4-3 lead, and kept the set alive by breaking back to make it 5-5, only to give up his serve once more in the next game as Djokovic finally sealed a two-set lead.
An early break in the third effectively decided the contest, Djokovic cruising from 3-2 up to victory in two hours, four minutes.
“It’s almost 1am, but obviously I don’t feel like sleeping,” he said before turning his attention to third-round opponent Shapovalov, the 19-year-old No.25 seed.
“I’ve got lots of respect for him, especially for his determination and professionalism at such a young age. He’s very mature mentally, which is not really common to see in young players that they feel so comfortable and confident. They’re not always backing themselves on the big stage.
“He has proven he can beat the big players, so I’m expecting a tough one.”