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Novak Djokovic took care of business on Tuesday in Miami, surviving a difficult tussle with the always dangerous Alexandr Dolgopolov in three sets, but the world No. 1 and four-time Miami champion didn’t do so without a bit of a meltdown (see video above).

More: Djokovic Survives the Snarly Dog

After falling behind 5-4 in the first set, the Serb terminated the life of one of his trusty Head racquets. But don’t feel bad for the racquet. It was a swift, painless death, and it had a good life, making it all the way to Stadium Court in Miami.

There are many racquets that spend their days in closets, or in the trunks of cars, or in the hands of 2.5-level players on seedy public courts.

This racquet made it to the top of the pops, if only for a few games.

Like the great Neil Young once said: “My my, hey hey. It’s better to burn out then to fade away.”

Djokovic would later try to express the way he felt on the court at that moment, saying “It's just I played a lot of matches. I had a great start of the year, but in some other way it's taking a little bit of a toll mentally on me. I mean, I don't feel that I'm very fresh on the court, even though I'm trying.”

Djokovic hopes that a day off will help him recharge his batteries for the quarterfinals. He’s just three matches away from becoming the first man in history to win the Indian Wells-Miami double for a third time.

“Again, I'm in the quarterfinals of this tournament,” he said. “This day off tomorrow will definitely serve me and help me to recover mentally mostly, because physically I'm fine. I feel okay. Hopefully I can, you know, perform better in the next one.”

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