The former world number one defeated Cressy 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 to begin his quest for a record-extending eighth championship after receiving a bye into the second round. The 35-year-old 21-time Grand Slam champion from Serbia has already won 17 games in a row. Dan Evans and Jack Draper of Britain earlier achieved victories to advance to the round of 32 in Paris-Bercy.
Djokovic won the tie-break in the first set and then won the sole break of the match to lead 5-4 in the second set before serving out the match to earn his 11th straight victory at the Paris Masters. The sixth seed, Djokovic, with 19 winners to Cressy’s 36, but the American struggled with 22 unforced errors.
In the following round, Djokovic will take on Karen Khachnov of Russia or Marc-Andrea Huesler of Switzerland. Djokovic remarked, “It was pretty stressful, just a lot of pressure.” “You don’t have a lot of leeway to relax and perhaps play a few “softer” games when you play someone who serves this well, both on the first and second serves.
“A break arrived at the ideal time, the correct moment. I avoided a break point, which made me quite happy with the manner I held my serve. To end his ATP season on a high note, British number two Evans won in the Paris Masters for the first time in his career.
Evans, 32, defeated American Brandon Nakashima, 21, 6-3, 3-6, 6-4, to go to the second round of the final regular event of the men’s season. Next up is Greek fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, the world’s number 27 player.
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After defeating France’s Arthur Rinderknech 6-3, 6-4, the quickly rising 20-year-old Draper joined Evans in the round of 32. Following an amazing breakout year, Draper into the top 50 in the world, demonstrating why he is regarded as one of the sport’s most talented young players.
The left-hander, who has earned a spot in the forthcoming NextGen ATP Finals for the year’s top players under the age of 21, once again displayed his talent and self-assurance with a straightforward victory over French No. 1 Rinderknech on his Paris debut.
In the second round, Draper will face Frances Tiafoe, an American who made it all the way to the semi-finals of the US Open in September. Evans, in contrast to Draper, has seen professional success later in life. He achieved a career-high ranking inside the top 25 and won his first ATP title after turning 30.
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Another significant first was finally succeeding in a match in the indoor Paris tournament, one of the nine Masters 1000 events on the ATP Tour that consistently draws a strong field. Arthur Rindeknech is defeated by Jack Draper at the Paris Masters. In the third game, Evans broke his opponent’s served to get things going. He then forced more unforced errors from Nakashima from the baseline to win the set.
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