Djokovic overpowers Monfils with convincing victory, secure quarterfinal berth at Cincinnati Open

Novak Djokovic advanced to the quarterfinals of the Western & Southern Open with a straightforward victory over Gael Monfils, winning 6-3, 6-2.

Nearly 18 years after their first encounter, Gael Monfils and Novak Djokovic once again crossed paths in a tournament and faced off for the 19th time, with an incredible dominance by the Serbian at 18-0.

Djokovic had a swift second-round match following Alejandro Davidovich Fokina's retirement with the score at 6-4, 0-0 in favor of Djokovic, lasting just 42 minutes.

Read also

Coco Gauff battles through inconsistencies to defeat Noskova after an erratic match at Cincinnati Open

Frenchman Gael Monfils advanced by defeating 13th seed Cameron Norrie and recent Canadian Open finalist Alex de Minaur. The former world No. 6 has enjoyed an excellent campaign after a year away from the courts, during which he dropped to world No. 394.

Former world No. 1 Djokovic posed problems to Monfils with his service in the second game of the set, but the Frenchman recovered and maintained parity without conceding further break points until 4-3.

An erratic game from the former world No. 5 allowed Djokovic to break to love, and he then confirmed the set in his favor with his service, winning 6-3.

Read also

French tennis player banned for life after astonishing 39 breaches of Anti-Corruption Program

Monfils lost his way in the second set, conceding his service three times in a row to an impeccable Djokovic, who capitalized on his opportunities and went 5-0 ahead. A break in favor of Monfils allowed him to narrow the margin, but 'Nole' ultimately sealed the match 6-2.

Djokovic hit 61% of his first serves, winning 80% of them, and 63% with his second serve. On Monfils' side, he had a 54% first serve accuracy and won 80% of those points, but when playing with the second serve, he managed only 15%.

This marks Djokovic's 19th victory over Monfils, setting a new record for the most one-sided h2h, surpassing Rafael Nadal's 18-0 record against Richard Gasquet.

In the next round, Djokovic will face Taylor Fritz, who progressed to the second round after Dusan Lajovic's retirement during the first set with a score of 5-0 in favor of the American. Djokovic holds a 6-0 h2h record against Fritz, with their last meeting occurring at the 2022 Nitto ATP Finals

Tennis TV

@TennisTV

·Follow

Dominant. Devastating. Djokovic. It's *another* record for @DjokerNole as he beats Monfils for the 19th straight time! 😳 #CincyTennis

2.5K

Reply

Copy link

Read 46 replies