Djokovic defeated an 18-year-old opponent

Djokovic faced many difficulties before the young champion Roland Garros 2021. In the first set, Nole lost the hinge serve game and was led 4-5, before equalizing and pulling the juniors into the tie-break. In the brainstorming series, despite leading 3-1, Djokovic still lost 4-7 backwards.

Van Assche was at 389 ATP a year ago but is now the youngest in the top 100. He moves and defends well, causing Djokovic to make many self-defeating errors. It was not until the second set that the Serbian player found a way to neutralize the persistent play of his French opponent. Djokovic's serve and attack were both more consistent, to win 6-3 and put the match into the decisive set.

Djokovic lost the first serve of the third set, but dominated the rest of the set. The number one player in the world won three games of catching the ball, to end the decisive set with a 6-2 victory. He will face Dusan Lajovic or Gregoire Barrere in the quarterfinals of the Srpska Open, a tournament led by Djokovic's youngest brother, Djordje, as Director.

"This is probably the slowest court I've ever played," Djokovic said after the match on April 19. "I couldn't hit any ball past him. Van Assche saved every ball in the first set and a half, until I got the rhythm. I'm satisfied with the way I finished the game."

Nole's 17th win this season and 1048th of his career. He ranks fifth on the list of the most winning players in Open Era history. Djokovic is only 20 matches behind Rafael Nadal and Ivan Lendl.