TORONTO, Canada: Novak Djokovic made a winning return on Wednesday in his first match back since a shock third-round defeat at Wimbledon, defeating Gilles Muller in straight sets to advance at the Toronto Masters.
The Serbian world No.1 took the first step toward a possible 30th career Masters 1000 title as he beat Muller 7-5, 7-6 (7/3) in just under two hours.
“It’s tough playing the first hardcourt match since March,” said Djokovic. “It was hot and that made the ball move very fast.
“It was hard to control, it was not easy to play. But I managed to stay tough.
“I was disappointed to lose serve twice in the second set when I was up a break, but I was just glad to close this out in straight sets.”
Djokovic brings a formidable record back to Canada, winning 18 of 21 matches at the event, which alternates between Toronto and Montreal each year. The No.1 has advanced to the quarterfinals or better in eight of nine years in Canada.
Djokovic stands 47-4 on the season, with six titles. He was beaten a year ago in the Canadian final by Andy Murray.
Japanese third seed Kei Nishikori joined Djokovic as a winner, defeating Dennis Novikov 6-4, 7-5.
“I knew I was going to get up-and-downs because I haven’t played matches long time,” Nishikori, who retired in the Wimbledon fourth round, said.
“I didn’t practice much, but I played good tennis.”
Sixth seed Dominic Thiem is heading back to Austria for scans on a troublesome hip after quitting after just 20 minutes in a 4-1 loss to Kevin Anderson.
“I felt it since like two weeks,” Thiem said. “It didn’t get worse. I decided to go out and to try, but yeah, obviously it didn’t work out against such a good player.
“It’s the time to just give the body a little bit of time to really get 100 percent,” said one of the first ATP players to pull out of the Rio Olympics. “This is not the way I want that the body feels.”
Belgian seventh seed David Goffin advanced when Sam Querrey stopped while trailing 6-4, 2-1 with back pain.
American Ryan Harrison knocked out ninth-seeded compatriot John Isner 7-6 (7/3), 6-7 (4/7), 6-4 while Australian 12th seed Bernard Tomic advanced past Canadian Steven Diez 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).
French 13th seed Lucas Pouille lost to Rajeev Ram 6-4, 7-6 (7/5).
Venus cruises
In Montreal, Venus Williams breezed into the third round of the Rogers Cup in Montreal on Wednesday with a straight sets rout of Barbora Strycova as home hope Eugenie Bouchard upset 11th seed Dominika Cibulkova.
Sixth seed Williams, 36, showed no sign of lingering weariness following her defeat in the final of the WTA Stanford event in California last weekend, maintaining her 100 percent record over Strycova with a 6-3, 6-0 win.
Williams was pleased to have wrapped up the win in under an hour after a marathon three-hour battle with Strycova in their previous encounter.
Elsewhere Tuesday, Canada’s Bouchard delighted her hometown crowd with a 6-2, 6-0 drubbing of Cibulkova.
Victory was sweet for the former world No.5, who lost to Cibulkova at Wimbledon earlier this month.
“It’s special playing in Montreal,” Bouchard said afterwards during her on-court interview.
“I don’t get to do it often, so it just makes me extra motivated to play in front of you guys.”
Bouchard’s win came just a day after a grueling three-set battle with Lucie Safarova of the Czech Republic on Tuesday.
Bouchard had also been hit by a stomach complaint during a doubles match later Tuesday.
However she looked comfortable during a victory in one hour 13 minutes on Wednesday, saving seven break points while unfurling a stream of winners — 22 in total — to clinch victory.
“I felt very solid and very focused; it’s important for me to keep my focus and keep my energy up,” said Bouchard, who faces another Slovak, Kristina Kucova in the next round.
“I need to keep playing my game, no matter who’s on the other side of the net,” Bouchard said as she looked ahead. “It’s about me, being aggressive and enjoying it.”
Winning return for Djokovic in Toronto
Winning return for Djokovic in Toronto
