MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) —
Novak Djokovic propped up his left shoe on a courtside sign so he could stretch out a hamstring that he acknowledged afterward concerns him. He grimaced while flexing the muscle after one point, hopped on his right leg to keep weight off the left after another. He took a medical timeout while a trainer re-taped him during the second set — which Djokovic would go on to drop.
As if he needed another distraction, Djokovic was flustered enough by a heckler that he asked chair umpire Fergus Murphy to have the spectator removed from
Rod Laver Arena, telling the official: "The guy's drunk out of his mind. ... He's been provoking. He just wants to get in my head."
As Djokovic summed up afterward: "It was a lot happening tonight."
Here's what did not happen Thursday evening at the Australian Open: Djokovic did not lose his way entirely and, most importantly, he did not lose in the second round, which is what happened to both
Seeking a 10th trophy at Melbourne Park, to add to his own record, and a 22nd Grand Slam title overall, to equal Nadal's, Djokovic put everything aside and beat 191st-ranked French qualifier Enzo Couacaud 6-1, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 6-0. It was Djokovic's 23rd consecutive win at the Australian Open, a streak that paused a year ago when he couldn't play in the tournament because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19.