Novak Djokovic won 12 of the last 14 games of his match against Lorenzo Musetti to crush the Italian 6-2 6-2 and move into the quarter-finals of the Miami Open in his best performance since the Australian Open.
The momentum in the rain-delayed match seemed to swing in Djokovic’s favour when he complained to the chair umpire in the opening set over a serve-clock warning.
That frustration seemed to spark the Serbian, who broke the next game for a 4-2 lead and never looked back in the presence of an adoring crowd that included tennis greats Serena Williams and Juan Martin del Potro.
“I was star-struck. It was amazing to see first DelPo, obviously a long-time friend and a rival, so happy to have him around and get his support from the box,” Djokovic said.
“It was amazing, it was (the) first time to have DelPo in the box, so I want to thank him really for coming. And Serena, that was a surprise.”
Six-time Miami champion Djokovic crushed an exquisite backhand winner for a 5-2 second-set lead and sealed the win when Musetti double-faulted on match point.
“Actually, when I had that down-the-line passing shot, I pointed to her (Williams) and asked her whether it was OK,” he added.
“She said, ‘yeah, it was fine’. If Serena says it was fine, then it was amazing by everyone else’s standards.”
Fresh off a record 411th ATP Masters 1000 victory in his last match, Djokovic was slow out of the gates against Musetti as the Italian went up 2-0 in the first set.
A hold of serve was all the Serbian fourth seed needed to turn the match around, rattling off six straight games to claim the first set in 40 minutes.
The second set provided much of the same as Musetti was simply outmatched by his 37-year-old opponent, Djokovic wrapping up the win in one hour and 23 minutes.
Speaking to Sky Sports’ Gigi Salmon, Djokovic said: “I think the level is really good. It’s my best match of the tournament and for me what I like to see as I progress through a tournament is raising the level of tennis and that’s what’s happening.
“Overall it was a great performance, phenomenal to have Serena courtside. I think it was the first time, maybe the second time she’s watched me live so I was a bit nervous. Del Potro as well, long-time rival and friend in the box, so I had to deliver.”
Djokovic: Surreal one of my biggest rivals is my coach
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Djokovic spoke about his relationship with Andy Murray, admitting it is still surreal that one of his biggest rivals is his coach…
The 37-year-old also gave an interesting insight into the working environment alongside Andy Murray, saying: “We don’t know each other as people that well.
“We shared the same stage on the tour for a very long time – we’ve known each other maybe 25 years since the junior days, but when you’re rivals you don’t interact as much and actually before the match today we sat down waiting for matches to restart because of the rain delay, so we had a very interesting talk.
“I always had tremendous respect for Andy as a player but now even more so as a person. Such a nice guy and I’m really grateful he cares about me, that he cares about me doing well on the court.
“It’s still surreal in some sense that one of my biggest rivals is my coach. He’s pumping and jumping around the box, sometimes I kind of pinch myself and think, ‘is this real? Is this a dream?’ So it’s great.
“We’re trying to get the most out of this relationship as a player-coach and also spend some quality time together. I think Miami has been really good. We were here early – a week before the tournament started – so we played some golf, we enjoyed some dinners together and we’re having fun.”
Tale of the Tape
Djokovic will take on Sebastian Korda in the next round after the American beat Gael Monfils 6-4 2-6 6-4.
Musetti’s compatriot Matteo Berrettini had a better day on Tuesday, eclipsing Australian 10th seed Alex de Minaur 6-3 7-6 (11-9) to set up a clash with home favourite Taylor Fritz.
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Highlights of the round-of-16 Miami Open match between Grigor Dimitrov and Brandon Nakashima
Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo upset fifth seed Casper Ruud in straight sets to reach the quarter-finals, where he will face Grigor Dimitrov.
Meanwhile, top seed Aryna Sabalenka battled past China’s Qinwen Zheng 6-2 7-5 to reach the semi-finals of the women’s tournament.
“Always tough battles against her,” Sabalenka said after extending her head-to-head record against Zheng to 6-0. “Today I had to work really hard, especially in that second set. I’m really proud of the way I handled my emotions.
“Even when something didn’t work well, I was there and I was fighting for every point.”
She will face Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the next round, after the sixth seed conquered Magda Linette of Poland in straight sets.
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