NEW YORK (Reuters) – Novak Djokovic got his campaign to win a fourth U.S. Open, and 18th Grand Slam title overall, off to a flying start on Monday by beating Damir Dzumhur 6-1 6-4 6-1 to advance to the second round.
Djokovic broke Dzumhur’s serve for a seventh time to seal the win in the first night match on Arthur Ashe Stadium court, which, due to COVID-19, was missing the thousands of rowdy New York tennis fans that usually flock to Queens every year.
Dzumhur, who hails from Bosnia and Herzegovina, had no answer to the world number one’s blistering serve and stout defense in a match that lasted just under two hours.
The 28-year-old did not make it easy on himself, committing 41 unforced errors and eight double faults to fall to 0-3 lifetime against Djokovic.
With the win the Serbian, who won his fourth title of the year at the Western & Southern Open on Saturday, improved to 24-0 on the season.
Next up for Djokovic is a second-round meeting with Briton Kyle Edmund, who defeated Alexander Bublik in four sets earlier in the day. Djokovic holds a 5-1 advantage in their head-to-head meetings.
With the two other members of the sport’s Big Three – Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal – not playing at the tournament, Djokovic is a heavy favorite to hoist the trophy and pull within one Grand Slam title of Nadal (19) and two of Federer (20).
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
