May 04, (THEWILL) – Novak Djokovic advanced for the last 16 of the Masters 1000 on Tuesday after defeating Gael Monfils in what was his fourth tennis tournament of the season and his first in three years at the Mutua Madrid Open.
In one hour and 26 minutes, Djokovic won 6-3, 6-2 to underscore his utter dominance over his opponent. Djokovic has now defeated the French player 18 times and has never lost against Monfils.
The Serb, who had trained with Carlos Alcaraz of Murcia, won his sixth match of the season, allowing him to keep his world number one status for another week.
Djokovic is currently tied for first place with Daniil Medvedev, who is out due to injury. Djokovic, who won the Caja Magica clay in 2011, 2016, and 2019, showed flashes of the player who won Roland Garros a year ago.
There are only 19 days till the French Open, and he is coming off a second-place performance in the Belgrade Open.
Due to rain on Tuesday, the game had to be postponed. It took around 20 minutes to close the centre court. In the first set, the score was 2-2. In the first set, Monfils only won one more game.
The crowd was firmly on the seasoned French player’s side. Djokovic, who had Goran Ivanisevic and his brother Marko on his bench this week, played the more solid tennis.
Novak will rest on Wednesday while awaiting the outcome of Andy Murray’s match against Denis Shapovalov.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
