World number one Novak Djokovic blunted the power serving of South African Kevin Anderson to reach the fourth round of the Indian Wells ATP tournament with a 6-2, 6-3 victory on Monday.
|Last Updated: Mar 13, 2012, 08:17 AM IST|Source: Bureau
Indian Wells: World number one Novak Djokovic blunted the power serving of South African Kevin Anderson to reach the fourth round of the Indian Wells ATP tournament with a 6-2, 6-3 victory on Monday.
The top-seeded Serb, who beat Spaniard Rafa Nadal in last year`s final at Indian Wells, broke his towering opponent twice in a marathon opening set and once in the second to triumph in one hour 37 minutes.
"It was a very close match," Djokovic said in a courtside interview after breaking Anderson in the sixth and eight games to win the opening set in just under an hour.
"The scoreline does not reflect how close it was, especially the style of the match. In most of our matches ... the first set goes on for half an hour or more. I was fortunate to hold that break and I returned well today."
Djokovic, who lost to Anderson when they first met at the 2008 Masters Series event in Miami but won their next three encounters without losing a set, had five aces on Monday while the six-foot eight-inch Anderson delivered seven but the South African won only 41 percent of his second serves.
"This is one of my most successful tournaments," added the Serb, who was champion here in 2008 and again last year. "I love coming back to the desert."
Djokovic will next meet Pablo Andujar who advanced with a 7-6, 6-4 win against fellow Spaniard Albert Ramos.
In other matches, big-serving John Isner powered past Argentina`s Juan Monaco 7-5, 7-5 and France`s Gilles Simon beat Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka 6-4, 6-4.
Seventh-seeded Czech Tomas Berdych was scheduled to play American former world number one Andy Roddick later on Monday.
Bureau Report
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts.
Cookies Setting
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device and the processing of information obtained via those cookies (including about your preferences, device and online activity) by us and our commercial partners to enhance site navigation, personalise ads, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. More information can be found in our Cookies and Privacy Policy. You can amend your cookie settings to reject non-essential cookies by clicking Cookie Settings below.
Manage Consent Preferences
Strictly Necessary Cookies
These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. They are usually only set in response to actions made by you which amount to a request for services, such as setting your privacy preferences, logging in or filling in forms. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work or you may not be able to login.
Functional Cookies
These cookies enable the website to provide enhanced functionality and personalisation. They may be set by us or by third party providers whose services we have added to our pages. If you do not allow these cookies then some or all of these services may not function properly.
Targeting Cookies
These cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They are also used to limit the number of times you see an advert as well as help measure the effectiveness of an advertising campaign. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.
Performance Cookies
These cookies allow us to count visits and traffic sources so we can measure and improve the performance of our site. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. All information these cookies collect is aggregated and therefore anonymous. If you do not allow these cookies we may not know when you have visited our site, and may not be able to monitor its performance.