Novak Djokovic had a successful start at the 2023 Srpska Open in Banja Luka despite beginning slowly.
The Serb struggled with an injury during his previous campaign in Monte Carlo, and he admitted that he's not 100% fit ahead of the ATP 250 event in Banja Luka. In the second round, Djokovic faced a difficult opponent as French prodigy Luca van Assche defeated Stan Wawrinka in round one.
And the Frenchman flew also into the match against the world no. 1 fearlessly. In the first set, he was the first played to break and despite losing the advantage, he managed to take the opening set into a tie-break.
Van Assche didn't start well as he faced a 1-3 deficit, but despite the crowd getting behind the 22-time Grand Slam winner, he was able to show his qualities and win the first-set tie-break 7-4 to gain a major confidence boost ahead of the remainder of the match.
The 18-year-old needed to follow up on a good first-set showing also in the remainder of the match, but Djokovic made that difficult for him. The Serb lost only two points on his serve in the second set and added superb returning to win it 6-3 and take the match into a decider.
Van Assche started well in the third set again. He got the first break and looked to forget what happened in the middle part of the match. But Djokovic's experience proved to be too much for the Frenchman as the Serb won 6-7(4), 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the quarterfinals of the 2023 Srpska Open in Banja Luka.
Up next, he will face either compatriot Dusan Lajovic, or another Frenchman, the eighth-seeded Gregoire Barrere.
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