Novak Djokovic chalked up his 400th grand slam victory with a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(4) defeat of Botic van de Zandschulp to reach the fourth round on Saturday, but the Serb was fortunate not to receive a code violation after losing his cool.
An incident in the second set might have proved very costly, with Djokovic carelessly sending a ball flying close to the head of a ball girl at the net.
The 38-year-old was disqualified from the US Open in 2020 after hitting a line judge with a ball struck in annoyance, while there have been several other instances where he has risked the same outcome.
Men's singles
(1) Carlos Alcaraz v Tommy Paul (19)
(10) Alexander Bublik v Alex de Minaur (6)
(3) Alexander Zverev v Francisco Cerundolo (18)
(11) Daniil Medvedev v Learner Tien (25)
(5) Lorenzo Musetti v Taylor Fritz (9)
(16) Jakub Mensik v Novak Djokovic (4)
(8) Ben Shelton v Casper Ruud (12)
(22) Luciano Darderi v Jannik Sinner (2)
Women's singles
(1) Aryna Sabalenka v Victoria Mboko (17)
Yulia Putintseva v Iva Jovic (29)
(3) Coco Gauff v Karolina Muchova (19)
(12) Elina Svitolina v Mirra Andreeva (8)
(6) Jessica Pegula v Madison Keys (9)
Wang Xinyu v Amanda Anisimova (4)
(5) Elena Rybakina v Elise Mertens (21)
Madison Inglis v Iga Swiatek (2)
Sunday's order of play (singles only)
Rod Laver Arena
Day: Sabalenka v Mboko, Alcaraz v Paul
Night: Bublik v De Minaur, Svitolina v Andreeva
Margaret Court Arena
Day: Gauff v Muchova, Medvedev v Tien
John Cain Arena
Day: Putintsteva v Jovic, Zverev v Cerundolo
Djokovic held his hands up, saying: “I apologise for that. That was not necessary and in the heat of the moment. I was lucky there, and I’m sorry for causing any distress to the ball kid or anybody.”
Djokovic opened the evening session on a steamy day when play continued under the main show court roofs and eased to a 5-3 lead before firing a sublime backhand crosscourt winner and celebrating with his arms out to mimic a plane. He endured minor turbulence after that point, but had no trouble taking full flight again as he broke in the opening game of the second set when a deflated Van de Zandschulp fired his backhand long.
Up two sets, Djokovic had treatment for a blister on his foot after a tumble and rallied from a break down before holding his nerve in the tie-break to set up a match with the 16th seed, Jakub Mensik, or Ethan Quinn. With his 102nd victory here, he equalled six-times champion Roger Federer’s record at the year’s first major.
Djokovic said he had lost control of his emotions when asked what advice he would give to his younger self. “Calm down, you jerk,” Djokovic said.
“I’m too stressed on the court very often. Too much tension at times. I would say patience is a big one. When we are younger, regardless of the area of life we are involved in, we want everything here and now, today.
“Just having a bit of patience and trust in the process – and surrounding yourself with the right people – that’s one of the biggest keys early on in the career of the young player. You have to build your character so you understand what kind of people you want around. People who can connect with you on a private level.
“There has to be a good chemistry, there has to be a good atmosphere, from which you can extract good vibes and good energy that can serve you for your great performance.”
