Monte Carlo: World No.1 Novak Djokovic took out his frustration on the racket in a scrappy performance but did enough to overcome German Philipp Kohlschreiber in a 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 win to advance to the third round of the Monte Carlo Masters tennis tournament, here Tuesday.
The Serb, who received a first round bye, clinched the first set with penetrating groundstrokes from the baseline but struggled with his serve in the second and serving at 2-3 down was forced to save two breakpoints. On the third breakpoint opportunity for Kohlschreiber, Djokovic inexplicably hit a backhand volley wide to put his opponent 4-2 ahead.
A furious Djokovic went on to smash his racket three times on the court and was met with a chorus of boos from the spectators.
Two-time winner here, Djokovic would go on to drop his serve for the fourth time in the set but regained his composure with an early break in the decider. He maintained the advantage to avenge his Indian Wells second-round defeat by Kohlschreiber last month.
“There were lots of ups and downs. It was not the prettiest of matches,” Djokovic, who recorded his 850th tour-level win, said. “He played well, but a win is a win. This was a tough first match of the clay season. I had to figure out how I needed to move; this kind of match can be expected. It was probably good for me to spend so long on the court.”
