Novak Djokovic cruises past Cristian Garin in straight sets at Astana Open - ‘I played as well as I can’

Novak Djokovic says he played «as well as I can» in his dominant 6-1 6-1 victory over Cristian Garin in the first round of the Astana Open. Djokovic broke straight away and did so on two more occasions as he raced to the first set in 24 minutes. Ad It was more of the same in the second set as he won a sensational point to break in the fourth game before going on to take the win.

TennisToo rusty, too tired? Alcaraz, Ruud fail to hit US Open heights in shock losses3 HOURS AGO He will play Botic van de Zandschulp in the next round on Thursday. “From the start to the end it was a great performance,” said Djokovic. “Playing in a new tournament in different conditions, first match, it’s never easy.

“You are looking to see how you can adapt but I did it perfectly really. I played as well as I can, just made him work and used every opportunity that was presented to me.” Djokovic is playing off the back of winning his 89th ATP career title in Tel Aviv. The Serbian looked extremely strong and is the favourite to win this week’s tournament in Kazakhstan.

Nadal v Djokovic: Who could break Federer’s one-surface title record? Too rusty, too tired? Alcaraz, Ruud fail to hit US Open heights in shock losses Asked how long it took him to adjust to the slower conditions in Astana compared to Tel Aviv, Djokovic said: “I was lucky that throughout my career I was pretty good to adjusting to different conditions and surfaces. «I think that experience comes with knowing what to do. “Winning a tournament, losing in a final or a semi-final makes a difference mentally.