As has typically been the case throughout the head-to-head history, Grigor Dimitrov gave Novak Djokovic a decent test but came up short in the end.
Djokovic improved to 11-1 lifetime in the matchup by beating Dimitrov 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 in the third round of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia on Sunday afternoon. The world No. 1 quickly recovered from losing the second set to advance after two hours and 19 minutes.
“[I was] very solid,” Djokovic assessed. “I think I could have won in straight sets. I was a set and 4-2 up and had a pretty decent forehand in the middle of the court at deuce on his serve and missed that. He held his serve well, we had new balls the next game, I did a double fault, the crowd got into it and got behind him and of course the energy of the place and the of the match changed.
“I dropped my level a bit, but luckily I managed find it right away in the first game [of the third set], made that crucial break and kind of shifted the momentum to my side. So I’m really pleased with the way I closed out the match.”
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Djokovic is joined in the last 16 by Holger Rune, Francisco Cerundolo, Laslo Djere, and Alexei Popyrin. Rune made quick 6-4, 6-2 work of Italian veteran Fabio Fognini.
Due to rain on Saturday, second-round action was also in progress on Sunday. Among the seeded players who won their opening matches were Daniil Medvedev, Stefanos Tsitsipas, and Lorenzo Musetti. Meanwhile, Taylor Fritz, Jiri Lehecka, and Roberto Bautista Agut got upset.
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