Novak Djokovic lauds Maxime Cressy for 'courageous' serve-and-volleying in Paris clash - ‘An ancient style’
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Updated 01/11/2022 at 19:18 GMT
Novak Djokovic praised the "ancient style" of Maxime Cressy after defeating the American in straight sets to reach the third round of the Paris Masters. One break of serve was enough for the Serbian in a 7-6 (1) 6-4 victory, and afterwards he spoke of his respect for Cressy's serve-and-volley approach. Next, Djokovic will face Marc-Andrea Huesler or Karen Khachanov.
Highlights: Djokovic breezes past Cressy to reach second round in Paris
Novak Djokovic spoke of his respect for Maxime Cressy’s “ancient” serve-and-volley style after fighting hard to break down the American in his Paris Masters second round victory.
The Serbian triumphed 7-6 (1) 6-4 on Tuesday to progress to the third round and get off to the perfect start in his bid for a seventh title in the French capital.
Djokovic was ruthless on serve, boasting a 92% first-serve success rate and 81% on his second, but he found it hard to break Cressy.
The 25-year-old’s serve-and-volley strategy helped him drop just one service game in the match, and the former world No. 1 was impressed by what he saw.
"It does change a lot because not only do you have to get the return back, but you have to put it under his feet, which is very difficult to do," Djokovic told the ATP website.
"It's nice to see someone that comes in after first and second serve. It just gives a different look from the tennis fans' point of view. I appreciate that, I respect that.
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'Everything I could have done I've done really well' - Djokovic pleased with Cressy win
“It takes courage to play with this modern tennis nowadays this kind of style that is almost an ancient style. You don't have many players that do that. Possibly he's the only one at the top."
Neither player was broken in the opening set, but Djokovic ran away in the tiebreak with a devastating display, taking it 7-1.
One chance was enough for the sixth seed in the second set, as he pounced on a break point opportunity late in the set, before serving out to progress.
“It was very intense, just a lot of pressure,” Djokovic said.
“When you play someone that serves this well — first and second serve — you don't have much room to relax and maybe play kind of a softer few games.
“You just have to be on your toes all the time. Credit to him for serving big in some big moments. I had my chances [in the] first set to break him, second as well.
"A break came at the right time, perfect time actually. I was very pleased with the way I held my serve, didn't face a break point.”
"I had to lock in, I had to not give him gifts and points," Djokovic added.
"What I could do and what I wanted to do is to really do what I do best, which is just be solid from the back of the court and wait for the opportunities when they are presented, try to capitalise on them...[I'm] just overall very pleased with the way I felt and the way I played."
Djokovic will face Marc-Andrea Huesler or Karen Khachanov next in his bid to win a third trophy on the trot, following victories in Tel Aviv and Astana in October.
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