Advertising

A strong lineup at the Erste Bank Open in Vienna Tuesday features world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, second-seeded home favorite Dominic Thiem, three-time major champion Stan Wawrinka and former world No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov. Read below for a breakdown of the Center Court matches.

Following their meeting at Belgrade in 2010, more than ten years went by before compatriots and close friends Novak Djokovic and Filip Krajinovic found themselves on opposite sides of the net again on tour. Now, the two have met twice in six weeks, with Djokovic winning in similar fashion on both occasions.

In Rome last month, Djokovic prevailed, 7-6 (7), 6-3, where he erased a 1-4 hole in their first-set tiebreaker. On Tuesday in Vienna, Krajinovic pressed Djokovic even further, but the pressure of trying to close out the first set against the world No. 1 proved to be too heavy to handle once again. Djokovic ultimately secured a 7-6 (6), 6-3 victory, firing 39 winners (+12 differential) in the process.

Krajinovic was down 1-3 to start, but battled back to win four consecutive games, highlighted by a terrific drop-shot/backhand-pass combination to go up a break in the eighth game. But at 5-4, 15-30, the 28-year-old shanked an open-court forehand and dropped serve on the next point.

Djokovic passes Krajinovic test in Vienna; Thiem, Dimitrov win openers

Advertising

In the tiebreak, Krajinovic opted for a questionable serve and volley at 5-4, and was immediately handcuffed by his countryman’s well-struck low return. After missing a set point on Djokovic’s serve, Krajinovic was in prime position to create a second set point, only to frame an overhead in the middle part of the net.

Djokovic passes Krajinovic test in Vienna; Thiem, Dimitrov win openers

Advertising

Djokovic pounced to seal the tight set, and much like in Rome, secured an early break in the second set to create some space and broke to end the encounter. The top seed completed his day after one hour and 58 minutes to win his first match in Vienna since lifting the trophy 13 years ago. It could be a memorable week for Djokovic, who is aiming to add enough points to his total to clinch the ATP’s year-end No. 1 ranking for a sixth time, which would tie Pete Sampras for the all-time record.

Djokovic passes Krajinovic test in Vienna; Thiem, Dimitrov win openers

Djokovic passes Krajinovic test in Vienna; Thiem, Dimitrov win openers

Advertising

Second seed Dominic Thiem saw leads in both of his sets disappear, but found a way through world No. 529 Vitaliy Sachko, 6-4, 7-5, to open his title defense.

Playing his first match since falling to Diego Schwartzman in a marathon five-setter at the French Open, Thiem began with a 5-1 double-break advantage, only to see Sachko, a lucky loser, have a chance to level with two game points. The home favorite won the final five points to end the up-and-down set with a timely break.

Thiem then erased a break deficit in the second set to move ahead 4-2, yet Sachko hung with him to get back on serve once again. The Ukrainian was two points from reaching a tiebreaker, but Thiem came up with a tremendous defensive reply to set up his second match point, and crossed the finish line.

Djokovic passes Krajinovic test in Vienna; Thiem, Dimitrov win openers

Advertising

Bidding for his second crown of 2020, Thiem will face Cristian Garin on Thursday. The Chilean knocked out Stan Wawrinka, 6-4, 6-7 (9), 6-3, in two hours and 14 minutes. Garin saved seven set points in the second set, until Wawrinka finally converted to level the match. The momentum was short-lived for the Swiss, who fell behind 0-3 in the decider and couldn't find a way back into the match at the end.

After winning a close opening set, Grigor Dimitrov pulled away from Karen Khachanov to win his opening match, 7-6 (6), 6-3.

Khachanov, making his first appearance since an “emotional, complicated and difficult” loss to Dan Evans in Antwerp last Friday, went up an early break on the Bulgarian but was unable to consolidate. The two would remain on even terms until the tiebreaker, where Khachanov erased a 0-3 deficit by taking five consecutive points. A netted routine backhand saw the Russian lose his mini break advantage, and Dimitrov leaned on his forehand to grab the final momentum swing in the set.

Djokovic passes Krajinovic test in Vienna; Thiem, Dimitrov win openers

Djokovic passes Krajinovic test in Vienna; Thiem, Dimitrov win openers

Advertising

Dimitrov soon built a 5-1 lead in the second set, which proved crucial after failing to serve it out on his first opportunity. The former world No. 3 finished with 25 winners (15 forehand) to 18 unforced errors and was successful in all 14 of his trips to the net to clinch his first meeting with Khachanov.

“Karen is such an excellent player, such a heavy hitter. With conditions like that, actually the court kind of favors him quite a bit,,” Dimitrov said on court afterwards. “I was able to play a very solid game, make the right decisions at the right time. I was able to use my slice and redirect it when I most needed it. Serve was on point. All those components when you put them together, it felt pretty good.”

In the second round, Dimitrov could get a shot at Roland Garros redemption against Stefanos Tsitsipas should the No. 3 seed advance past Jan-Lennard Struff.