Novak Djokovic made an impressive return to the ATP Tour on Monday, beating Lorenzo Musetti 6-1, 6-3 at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi. It is not just a great personal achievement for Novak who recently returned from injury after six months away from competition, but also reflects his confidence towards the coming season and beyond.
In fact, this was his first match since having finished runner-up to Rafael Nadal at Wimbledon on July 16 last year. A back problem forced him out of action until now and he wouldn’t have been able to play for many more months without surgery had there been no significant developments in medical technology.
Sensibly, he decided against risking his long-term health as surgery would have been a last resort. But during this period of rehabilitation he built up strength and flexibility with an eye on the future. This facilitated a comeback that will have pleased all those involved in tennis.
For Musetti it was a first appearance at an official event for more than a year since losing to Andy Murray at the US Open second round last August. He came into the match riding a nine-match winning streak though and had knocked out Grigor Dimitrov, another former world No 1 who is looking to make his mark again after injury problems earlier this year. As such, it promised to be an intriguing contest between two young players who many regard as the future of tennis.
But it was one-way traffic in Abu Dhabi and Novak will be looking to build on this momentum and prove to his fans and competitors alike that he is back stronger than ever.
“I’m very pleased with the performance, it’s been two weeks since surgery and I’ve never felt any pain in the wrist,” Djokovic said on-court after his win.
In his first competitive match since sustaining a left wrist injury in Shanghai last October, former world No 1 Djokovic was dominant on Tuesday night against the Italian qualifier. The Serb dropped just one point on serve in each set and broke Musetti five times. Djokovic’s next opponent is South Korea’s Chung Hyeon, who defeated American Steve Johnson 7-6 (7/5), 4-6, 6-4 in a late match after Nick Kyrgios retired injured when trailing 21 in sets against Serbia’s Dusan Lajovic. “I’m very pleased with the performance, it’s been two weeks since surgery and I’ve never felt any pain in the wrist,” Djokovic said on-court after his win.
Novak Djokovic has made a winning return to the ATP Tour after an elbow injury with a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Lorenzo Musetti at the Dubai Open.
In his first competitive match since sustaining a left wrist injury in Shanghai last October, former world No 1 Djokovic was dominant on Tuesday night against the Italian qualifier.
