Novak Djokovic made a winning start in Turin and after the match, he was glad in the way he played especially in the first set.
Novak Djokovic had an odd start to the match losing his serve in his first service game. The way he lost it was quite memorable. He took a 30-0 lead in the game before losing 3 straight points. At 30-40, he slipped and barely recovered to stay in the point ultimately losing it. He was asked about that after the match and he recalled the situation saying it was strange:
"I recovered from that fall on that break point in that first game. It was very strange. I played a good forehand and came into the net and had a pretty comfortable overhead and I slipped, tripped, dropped my racquet, and lost my serve."
Djokovic was annoyed after that letting out a few shouts of frustration but very soon he found ways to get the break back. Not only did he get it back he was also able to win the set in a very closely contested tiebreak where he was down 3-2 with two serves for Ruud coming up. That was very rewarding for Djokovic who said:
"The conditions here are quite tough. If you lose your serve, it is difficult to get it back. But I managed to stay in."
All in all it was a good day for Novak who finished it off by saying:
"I am very pleased with the way I handled the match.”