Novak Djokovic becomes the only man in Open Era with at least 80% wins on all 3 surfaces
With his opening-round win at the 2023 Italian Open, Novak Djokovic has become the only ATP player in the Open Era to register a winning percentage of 80% or higher on clay, hard, and grass surfaces.
Djokovic began his title defense in Rome by defeating Tomas Martin Etcheverry 7-6(5), 6-2 in the second round on Friday, May 12. The match, which lasted an hour and 52 minutes, saw the World No. 1 break his opponent thrice. He hit 25 winners and 15 unforced errors, compared to 12 winners and 14 unforced errors from Etcheverry.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion racked up his 260th win on the red dirt, which raised his win percentage to exactly 80%. He has lost 65 matches so far on clay, which he has labeled "the most challenging surface to adapt" in the past. On hard courts, the World No. 1 has a 670-122 record, with a win percentage of 84.6%. Finally, he maintains an 85.8% win rate on grass, having won 109 matches and lost 18.
Seven former players have a winning percentage of at least 80% on two surfaces— Rod Laver, Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Pete Sampras, Bjorn Borg, Ivan Lendl, and Roger Federer. Djokovic's biggest rival Rafael Nadal dominates the clay courts but his winning percentage falls short of 80% on grass and hard surfaces.
At the 2023 Italian Open, the 35-year-old Serb is aiming to extend his record to 39 Masters 1000 titles and also earn his seventh crown in Rome. He was beaten by Lorenzo Musetti in the third round of the Monte-Carlo Masters last month before losing to compatriot Dusan Lajovic in the quarterfinals of the ATP 250 Srspska Open.
Novak Djokovic reveals how he fought against Tomas Martin Etcheverry despite physical struggles
Novak Djokovic was far from his best during his second-round win over Tomas Martin Etcheverry at the 2023 Italian Open. The Serb appeared to be struggling physically during the first set but managed to win the second one comfortably.
In his on-court interview, the top seed remarked that it took him a while to find his rhythm and that he was glad to play well in the second set.
"It's always a little bit tricky playing someone for the first time," Djokovic said. "He's a clay-court specialist. He started better than I did, but I found my groove towards the end of the first. The second set was good, especially the last three or four games. I'm happy with the way I closed out the match."
When asked how he managed to win despite struggling, he said:
"You act like you're 100 percent (laughs). Most of the times, I guess you're not, but you want to show your opponent that you're out there trying to fight for every ball. I guess that's what happened, it's kind of cat-and-mouse always on clay."
Djokovic will take on 26th seed Grigor Dimitrov in the third round on Sunday, May 14, in what will be their 12th tour-level encounter.