Novak Djokovic admits seeing former coach Marian Vajda in the opponent’s box will be difficult ahead of his clash with Alex Molcan
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Alex Molcan, Marian Vajda, Novak Djokovic
World No. 1 Novak Djokovic made a dominant start in his title defence in the 2022 French Open as he saw off Yoshihito Nishioka with a 6-3, 6-1, 6-0 win. Djokovic was in a rampant form and despite a rough start to the match in the first set, Novak captured the complete control of the match in the second and third sets to advance ahead and extend his streak of not losing in the first round at the Stade Roland Garros to 18 years.
With the win, Novak will now take on Slovakian Alex Molcan who won on his debut at the French Open by defeating Federico Coria 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. Molcan, currently ranked 38th in the world had a good time during the Golden Swing reaching two Tour finals but was unfortunate to settle for the runners-up trophy on both occasions. He first reached the finals in Morocco where he lost to David Goffin in three sets.
His second finals appearance came at last week’s 2022 Lyon Open where he lost to Cameron Norrie in the finals in a closely fought 3-set match. One of the major differences in the two finals for Molcan was his coaching staff as, during the tournament in Lyon, Molcan was under the watchful eyes of his compatriot Marian Vajda, the former coach of Djokovic, who joined Molcan at the start of May 2022.
Marian Vajda and Novak Djokovic had split before the Golden Swing
With Vajda and Djokovic ending their association of nearly 15 years, the former coach-player duo will face off against each other during the second round of the French Open and Novak was candid in speaking that seeing his former coach, who was nothing other than family for him, in the opponent’s camp will be a difficult thing to digest.
“I’ve written to Marian a few days ago, we have seen each other here as well. When I looked at the draw, it wasn’t easy, I must admit. Molcan for me is an opponent just like any other. But I’ve never had Marian in the opposing box. To be honest, I’m not looking forward to it,” said Djokovic speaking in the press conference after his win over Nishioka.
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Sarthak Shitole
(3462 Articles Published)