Novak Djokovic overcomes slow start in Rome to book 3rd round

Novak Djokovic is through to the 3rd round of the Rome Open after beating Etcheverry in two sets 7-6(5) 6-2 despite a slow start in the first set.

Novak Djokovic won his match in Rome but there are plenty of questions surrounding him. He didn't start the match well getting broke early after which he opted to put a brace on his elbow. It's clear that whatever bothered him a few weeks ago is still there. He was unable to break back immediately but he did it a few games later.

For the most part, he looked fine and certainly had some vintage moments. At 5-4, Djokovic squandered a few set points having to play the tie-break. It didn't prove a huge issue as he was able to win it 7-5 even though he was down 0-3 to start. Etcheverry played really well but Djokovic had more winners and ultimately that proved enough.

The second set was far more impressive as Djokovic now found his good rhythm and played even better than before. He knew exactly what to do to beat his opponent after analysing his play in the slow first set and it resulted in a 6-2 finish in the second set. A decent match overall with 25 winners.