Novak Djokovic’s bid for tennis history at the US Open got off to a bumpy start against an 18-year-old Danish qualifier who arrived on court with his tennis kit in an Ikea bag.
The world No 1, bidding for a fourth Flushing Meadows title and to become the first man to complete the Calendar Grand Slam in 52 years, dropped the second set against the spirited Holger Rune.
However, the youngster, ranked 145 in the world, began cramping up in the third set and was in no fit state to mount a further challenge as Djokovic completed a 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-1 victory.
Rune, who was roared on by the Flushing Meadows fans, looked every part the underdog as he arrived on court carrying the ubiquitous blue bag. Asked about it after the match, the teenager said his only thought was convenience
“I think it’s a nice bag,” he explained. “I can have all my drinks there and bananas. It just suits me well to go on court.”
Djokovic praised his defeated opponent and suggested that the match might have been closer had Rune not cramped up.
“I got to say it’s never nice to finish a match like that. Holger deserves a big round of applause. It’s unfortunate,” said Djokovic.”I was trying to feel the ball out there. It wasn’t the best of my performance but he played well and I didn’t serve well in the decisive moments of the second set. After that it’s difficult to talk about the match, he couldn’t move much.
“It happened to me when I was younger. These things happen. You could see he struggled a lot and I feel for him. I’m sure we’ll see a lot of him in the future.”
Djokovic had hoped to have the crowd behind him, but the Serb said the atmosphere was “not ideal”. Djokovic, looking to become the first man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win all four slams in the same year, could only listen as fans chanted “Rune” throughout and applauded the young Dane’s bravery as he played on despite being hampered by his physical fatigue.
After wrapping up victory Djokovic did not deliver his customary post-match celebration – sharing his heart with all four sides of the court – and he later said he thought the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd had been booing him.
“I didn’t know what they were chanting honestly. I thought they were booing,” Djokovic said at a news conference.
“I don’t know, it was not ideal atmosphere for me. But I’ve been in these particular atmospheres before, so I knew how to handle it.
“It’s the largest stadium in sport. Definitely the loudest and the most entertaining stadium we have in our sport. Obviously you always wish to have crowd behind you, but it’s not always possible. That’s all I can say.”
Djokovic, 34, was playing his first match since missing out on a bronze medal at the Olympics, and there was no initial sign of rust as he immediately broke Rune’s serve and raced away with the first set in 26 minutes.
However Rune, swinging like a carefree, precocious teenager, broke Djokovic to love at the start of the second and had the Serbian rattled as he took the tie-break to level the match.
It was a curious set from Djokovic, with five double faults and 15 unforced errors telling its own story.
But while the Arthur Ashe crowd sensed a seismic upset, Rune’s fitness began to let him down, and the final set and a half was tough to watch. The Dane twice called for a medical timeout – the maximum number of times a player can request a trainer for help with cramp – and was limping heavily by the end.
A three-time US Open champion, Djokovic was also playing his first match at Flushing Meadows since his disqualification from last year’s tournament when he inadvertently hit a line judge with the tennis ball in his fourth round.
A fourth US Open trophy would take him ahead of his great rivals Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal in the Grand Slam count, with the trio all on 20 titles.
“There are things that you can always rely on, go back to when you are experiencing a little bit of a turbulence in terms of emotions on the court or off the court,” said Djokovic.
“When it gets too much, then I’ve developed a mechanism where I feel like I can mentally handle that.
“I do have a formula for many years that has worked well for me, that got me to where I am. At the same time, it’s not necessarily a guarantee that it will work every single time.”
Zverev out to ruin Djokovic’s party
Alexander Zverev is one of the players with the best chance of stopping Novak Djokovic winning all four Grand Slams this year and he started his US Open campaign with a composed win over Sam Querrey.
Zverev, the No 4 seed, last month wrecked Djokovic’s quest for a Golden Slam in the Olympic semi-finals on his way to gold. The German, who also won the hard-court title in Cincinnati last month, extended his winning run by beating Querrey 6-4, 7-5, 6-2.
“I’ve won two tournaments, I’m on a 12-match winning streak,” Zverev said. “I hope I can keep the level up and maybe even play better, because to beat Novak here is going to be an extremely difficult task.”
Barty back with a bang
World No 1 Ashleigh Barty booked her spot in the second round with a 6-1 7-6 (7) victory over Vera Zvonareva.
The Australian had missed the tournament at Flushing Meadows and the majority of other events in 2020 due to travel concerns over the coronavirus pandemic but has enjoyed a triumphant return to the tour this year.
Barty clinched the Wimbledon title in July and got her hard-court season under way with victory at the Cincinnati Masters earlier in August before 11 aces and 31 winners saw her begin this latest quest for a Grand Slam in fine fashion at the Arthur Ashe Stadium.
“I was disappointed not to be able to come and play last year but playing this time with the fans has made it all the better,” the 25-year-old said.
Carreno Busta throws it away in fifth set
In an extraordinary match on Court 4, American qualifier Maxime Cressy saved four match points in the final-set tie-break as he beat the No 9 seed Pablo Carreno Busta.
Carreno Busta led 5-2 in the tie-break before hitting two double faults and handing victory to the 24-year-old. The Spaniard is the first top-10 seed to be knocked out in the men’s draw.
Elsewhere, Wimbledon runner-up Matteo Berrettini and semi-finalist Denis Shapovalov both won in straight sets, while seeds Karen Khachanov, David Goffin, Fabio Fognini and Lorenzo Sonego were knocked out.