Djokovic and Murray Roll in Shanghai Openers
World number one Novak Djokovic cruised into the third-round of the Shanghai Rolex Masters on Wednesday, moving past Slovak Martin Klizan 6-2, 6-1.
Djokovic was dominant from the start and looked to get off of the court early in this one. He converted on five of his ten break point chances, winning more than half of the points on Klizan’s serve, to advance in one hour and three minutes.
“Klizan is a very flashy player. I knew that coming onto the court. I knew that he’s talented,” said Djokovic, who has now won 13 straight matches. “He can play very fast but with a tendency to make a lot of unforced errors, which he did. He made my life a bit easier on the court today. I was trying to serve, move him around the court. I just played as much as I needed. It was enough to win.”
Djokovic will take his 69-5 record this season into a third-round clash with 15th seeded Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, who came back from a set down to beat Dominic Thiem 6-7(4), 7-6(6), 6-3.
The two last met when Djokovic ousted Lopez in the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open.
Andy Murray had no problems in his second-round bout in Shanghai on Wednesday, routing American Steve Johnson 6-2, 6-4.
In his first match since anchoring Great Britain’s Davis Cup win over Australia, Murray looked sharp. He converted on four of his five break point chances, and while his serve wasn’t exceptional, he was able to save two break points to get past Johnson in straight sets.
“I felt good. I thought I moved well from the beginning, struck the ball cleanly,” said Murray. “From my side, I was happy with the way that I played and also the way my body felt. I thought I moved around the court very well. That’s obviously an important part of my game. That was key.”
Murray will take on another American next, 13th-seeded John Isner.
Isner picked up a nice victory on Wednesday, defeating Belgium’s David Goffin 6-3, 7-6(5).
Kei Nishikori fought back from a set down to upend Australian Nick Kyrgios 1-6, 6-4, 6-4 and move into the third-round in Shanghai. The sixth-seed will play 12th seeded South African Kevin Anderson who downed Fabio Fognini 6-3, 7-6(1).
Tomas Berdych got a strong test from American Jack Sock on Wednesday, but the sixth-seed from the Czech Republic hung on for the 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-4 win.
He will play 10th seed Gilles Simon next after Simon came back from a set down to beat Leonardo Mayer 6-7(0), 6-4, 6-2.
Stan Wawrinka defeated Viktor Troicki 7-6(3), 6-3 to book his spot in the third-round, and eighth-seed Rafael Nadal edged Ivo Karlovic 7-5, 6-7(4), 7-6(4) in the final match from Shanghai on Wednesday.
