In his opening tournament match since Wimbledon, Novak Djokovic weathered a difficult first-round test against Learner Tien to advance at the 2025 US Open.
The 24-time Grand Slam winner navigated his body's ebbs and flows and pushed off the impressive young American, winning 6-1, 7-6(3), 6-2.
Djokovic needed a quick medical stop after the second set, summoning ATP physio Clay Sniteman to retape a gushing big toe on his right foot. Earlier in the match, he seemed to be troubled by an issue with his hip and would sometimes hold his racquet behind his head, perhaps to suck in more oxygen, according to ATP reports.
Striving for his first Grand Slam victory since his fourth US Open in 2023, Djokovic will now have rest for two days before playing American qualifier Zachary Svajda on Wednesday.
In the second set, Djokovic had a nervous moment being 0-40 down in the sixth game but eventually held serve. He then later saved a set point in the 10th game. Despite this, his world-famous strength and courage shown to him as a player shone through as he went on to win the tiebreak and take a two-set lead.
Broken two saw Djokovic's unforced errors total five times his first-set number. But after the medical timeout to alleviate his toe blister, he regained footing in the third set. After falling right behind, the seventh seed captured five consecutive games to take command, eventually finishing the match in two hours and 25 minutes.
Interestingly, Djokovic hasn't lost a first-round Grand Slam match since the 2006 Australian Open, almost two decades now.
He has an untarnished 75-0 record in opening-round Grand Slam matches since that loss to Paul Goldstein in Melbourne. Now 38 years old, this win moves him closer to making a fourth straight Grand Slam semifinal.
