By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday December 31, 2024
Novak Djokovic eased through his first contest of 2025, but Nick Kyrgios was not so lucky in Brisbane.
Photo Source: TTV
The new year may not quite be here stateside, but the Serbian legend rang in 2025 in style on Tuesday night in Brisbane, earning a 6-3, 6-3 win over Rinky Hijikata to advance at the Brisbane International.
“I always expect myself to do well on the court,” Djokovic said. “To start off the new season with a win is very important.”
Djokovic opened his quest for a 100th career title with a business-like performance that saw him crack 26 winners against just 12 unforced errors. He needed just 74 minutes to get through, never facing a break point as he broke three times from five opportunities to set a quarterfinal with Gael Monfils.
Djokovic owns a 19-0 head-to-head record against Monfils.
“He's a year older than me,” Djokovic said of the 38-year-old Frenchman. “He's still going strong. He was always one of the best athletes that we have on the tour. Flexibility, agility, speed, you know, strength, it's just exceptional with him.”
“He's a super guy. You know, we have known each other since the junior days and played many matches against each other. I look forward to it. You know, I think he prefers these kinds of conditions, you know, where the surface is slightly quicker, and so he can get points off his first serve. His first serve can be really a big weapon if he's feeling good about it, which seems to be the case.”
Djokovic improved his career record to 1125-222.
Kyrgios' Debut Spoiled By Ace Machine Mpetshi Perricard
In other action Nick Kyrgios fell to hard-serving Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in three tiebreak sets 7-6(2), 6-7(4), 7-6(3).
Kyrgios, playing his first match since June of 2023 due to a wrist injury, struggled to deal with the mountainous serve of the 21-year-old, who fired 36 aces in the contest.
“I obviously went into the match understanding how he played,” Kyrgios said. “I already knew that he liked to hit two first serves, but props to him, he's found what works for his game style and he's committed to that. He's going to do some damage, for sure. He's going to have a long career. He's got an easy action on his serve. There were no real dips in speed or anything like that.”
Kyrgios said he was pleased to play his first match in 18 months, and happy to compete well.
“For me, honestly, it was a great match, considering I hadn't played in 18 months,” he said. “And to put myself in a winning position was exciting. It was just good to be back out there and to say that, you know, I can still play a level against someone like that who is coming off the best year of their career and only getting better and confident, and I'm coming back and I asked the question, and he just played a couple big points better than I did.”