Djokovic through to Olympic Second Round in 3 Sets

World no. 2 Novak Djokovic needed three sets to get through his opening match at the Olympic Games.  Playing Italian Fabio Fognini, the Serbian was decidedly tense to start the match.  The heavy favorite, he earned himself 3 opportunities to take the set and was unable to convert on any of them.  In the midst of a first-set tiebreak, the skies opened up on SW19 and the players were forced into a rain delay.

Three hours later, play resumed and a resilient Fognini took the first set 9-7 in the tiebreak.  However, a short warm up was all Djokovic seemingly needed to get back up to speed.  After squandering chances in the first set, the second seed began to buckle down.  Hitting 11 aces and 33 winners, the Serbian broke his opponent’s serve 5 times to take the match 6-7 (7-9), 6-2, 6-2.

Despite his win, Djokovic will have to further improve his game in order to contend for a medal here.  He potentially plays Andy Roddick in the second round.  The American is coming off a title win in Atlanta last week.  His London 2012 debut has been postponed due to rain.