DJOKOVIC THROUGH

Novak Djokovic has defeated Radek Stepanek of Czech Republic in the third round of the Australian Open 2013. Djokovic won the match in the straight sets by 6-4, 6-3, 7-5. This victory took Djokovic into the pre quarter finals.

This was the ninth match between these two players and Djokovic defeated Stepanek for the eighth time.

In the first set, both the players had a decent start. Neither of the two players succeeded in getting a breakthrough in the first 9 games. At the end of the ninth game, the score was 5-4 in the favour of Djokovic. The Serbian superstar gave Stepanek the first blow in the 10^th game and that was the end of the set.

Djokovic continued to flourish in the next two sets as well. He held his entire serve in both the sets and broke his opponent’s service once in each set to wrap up the match.

In the post match interview, Djokovic said, “I have played against Stepanek before. He is a tough player and he loves playing at big stages. So, I knew that it was not going to be an easy match for me.”

“When you play against a quality player, you don’t get too many breakpoints. So, it’s important to make sure that you capitalize on most of the breakpoints that you get. That’s what I did. I capitalized on every opportunity that came my way.”

“I have played very well so far, but, it’s only midway through the tournament. There are some important matches coming up. So, I need to continue playing in the same way.”

In the next round, Djokovic will take on Stanislas Wawrinka of Switzerland. Wawrinka made his way into the fourth round by securing victory over Sam Querrey of America.