Yet to find top gear, Novak Djokovic continues on at US Open

ATP Tour

Yet to find top gear, Djokovic continues on at US Open

Serbian defeats Svajda in four sets

Getty Images Novak Djokovic celebrates reaching the third round in New York for the 19th time. By Sam Jacot

Novak Djokovic was far from his best at the US Open once again on Wednesday, but he maintained his perfect second-round record in New York to reach the third round for the 19th time.

Djokovic overcame Learner Tien on Sunday in his first match since his Wimbledon semi-final exit but struggled with his footwork and balance throughout his Flushing Meadows opener. Three days on and the 38-year-old was unable to find his A-game for large periods against American qualifier Zachary Svajda, yet did enough to seal a 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 victory.

Djokovic committed 14 unforced errors in a low-quality first set and then found himself 1-3 behind in the third set. However, the 38-year-old managed to increase his intensity and benefited from a physical drop off from Svajda, who was serving below 90 mph on his first delivery throughout the third and fourth sets due to a leg issue.

“Not that great to be honest,” Djokovic said when asked about his tennis. “I was not really happy with my tennis in the first part of the match but also credit to Zach for playing some really high-quality tennis. It was unfortunate that he struggled with injury towards the end of the second, but kudos to him for staying on the court. He obviously could not serve as well as he did for the first set and a half but I wish him all the best.”

He knows a thing or two about playing on Ashe 🔥@DjokerNole comes from a set down to defeat Svajda and advance to R3!@usopen | #USOpen pic.twitter.com/g9bp70lHdv — ATP Tour (@atptour) August 27, 2025

With his win, Djokovic advanced to the third round at a major for a record 75th time, surpassing Roger Federer’s tally of 74. The former No. 1 player in the PIF ATP Rankings is seeking a record-extending 25th major and first since winning the US Open in 2023. He will next meet Cameron Norrie or Francisco Comesana.

“It is a little bit different in the past couple of years for me,” Djokovic said on his recent major results. “Kind of get a wear and tear quicker than I used to. I have to deal with that, a lot of recovery stuff off the court to try to make myself able to perform at the highest level for as many hours on the court.”

Djokovic admitted that he was surprised with how bad he was feeling during his first-round win against Tien and there were plenty of shaky moments during his two-hour, 35-minute clash against Svajda.

In the pair’s first Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting, Djokovic dropped the opening set when he could only push a heavy Svajda forehand wide. After levelling the match, he then surrendered a break of serve in the third set with a double fault.

However, the 22-year-old American qualifier, who had won four matches at the hard-court major to set a meeting with Djokovic, was unable to generate power through his legs from the third set onwards. The World No. 145’s drop off allowed Djokovic to regain momentum and march to victory.

Djokovic is 28-9 on the season, highlighted by winning his 100th tour-level title in Geneva in May. He has reached the semi-finals at all three majors this year but has failed to advance to a final. The last time the Serbian did not reach a Grand Slam title match in a season was in 2017.

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