Basel [Switzerland], October 29: Novak Djokovic kick-started his high-stakes end-of-year push on Wednesday afternoon at the Swiss Indoors Basel, where he dug deep to overcome French lefty Ugo Humbert 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Competing at the ATP 500 event for the first time since 2011, Djokovic was made to work hard against a formidable indoor opponent, but the 39-year-old eventually found his rhythm to pull away for an opening victory.
The former World No. 1's two-hour, 26-minute win could also prove pivotal in his bid to qualify for the Nitto ATP Finals: Djokovic is 11th in the ATP Live Race To Turin, 319 points behind ninth-placed Rafael Jodar, who is also through to the second round in Basel.
"It was a super tight match, very intense from the beginning," Djokovic said. "He was striking the ball beautifully, being super aggressive, taking the time away from me. I was under attack from the very first point. I had to weather the storm, but I managed to find my rhythm at the beginning of the second set.
"After that, I started feeling a bit more comfortable with his tempo. Overall, it was a huge challenge. I succeeded in managing to find the solutions in a tough match today."
For much of their first-round clash, Humbert troubled Djokovic with his powerful lefty forehand and ultra-flat groundstrokes that the Serbian struggled to contain during extended crosscourt exchanges.
But Djokovic - also renowned for his indoor prowess - gradually worked his way back into the contest, letting out a mighty roar en route to breaking serve in his first return game of the second set before racing towards his 33rd consecutive win against Frenchmen.
Humbert, who has claimed four of his seven ATP Tour titles on indoor courts, took a medical timeout at 1-4 in the second set to receive treatment on his lower back.
However, with Djokovic finding his rhythm, the fourth seed proved increasingly difficult to manage as he shifted into 'lock-down mode' and won a series of points from deep defensive positions.
Having triumphed at the ATP 500 event in Beijing earlier this month, Djokovic strengthened his bid for a record 19th qualification to the Nitto ATP Finals before accepting a wild card into Basel, where he won the title on his debut in 2009.
By defeating Humbert in his opener, the 39-year-old notched his 20th tour-level win of the year, marking the 21st consecutive season in which he has achieved that feat.
Djokovic will next face Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff, who earlier defeated countryman Yannick Hanfmann 6-4, 6-3 to maintain his strong run of form. Struff has now won five of his past six matches, having beaten top seed Arthur Fils in Brussels last week en route to his first ATP Tour final since 2024.
If Djokovic extends his perfect 8-0 Head2Head record against Struff, he will set a clash with Nuno Borges. The 29-year-old Portuguese opened Wednesday's action on centre court by rallying to upset Casper Ruud 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 and reach his fifth quarter-final of the season.
In early first-round action at the ATP 500 event, Denis Shapovalov made an emphatic start to his campaign with a 6-4, 6-2 win over Swiss qualifier Remy Bertola.
Source: Qatar Tribune
