Novak Djokovic is on the hunt for an 11th title at Melbourne Park but has already encountered a few early stumbling blocks.
The Australian Open is well underway, and the usual suspects have made their way through the early rounds.
Carlos Alcaraz beat Yoshihito Nishioka in straight sets to book his spot in the last 32, while Jannik Sinner, and Alexander Zverev, secured their spots in the third round without too much hassle.
Ten-time champion Djokovic has also made it through but did so by dropping a set in each of his two matches so far.
Djokovic beat Nishesh Basavareddy in the first round, coming back from a set down, as the young American took the first, 6-4.
In the second round, the Serb won the first, before his Portuguese opponent leveled things up, with Djokovic eventually beating Jaime Faria in four sets.
Perhaps it was good for the 37-year-old to get some sets under his belt during the early rounds, but one WTA legend has now sent him a big warning ahead of his third-round match.
Martina Navratilova warns Novak Djokovic he must ‘pick it up’ if he wants to beat Tomas Machac
Speaking on the Tennis Channel Live podcast, former world number one Martina Navratilova revealed what she thinks Djokovic needs to do in order to reach the fourth round.
“Novak [Djokovic] has got to pick it up a little bit,” she said.
“If he plays the same way as he did in his last two matches, then I think [Tomas] Machac wins.”
Machac advanced to the third round with wins over Sumit Nagal, and Reilly Opelka, with his second-round triumph over the American coming in five sets.
Navratilova believes that the Czech number one could still be feeling the emotional effects of such a hard-fought encounter.
“How different will this match be, from the one that he just played against [Reilly] Opelka,” she said.
“I mean night and day right.
“It was a five-setter from Machac, but emotionally it was much more taxing than physically so I think he’ll be alright physically.”
Despite sending out a warning to Djokovic, the 18-time Major champion still expects the world number seven to advance to the fourth round.
“Novak picks it up whenever he needs to, so I still expect Novak to win,” said Navratilova.
-“But I don’t think it will be easy.”
Tomas Machac keeps his game plan ‘secret’ ahead of Novak Djokovic match
Machac battled his way past the big-serving Opelka in the second round, as he reached the third round of a Major tournament for the fourth time in his career.
It was a stellar performance and one that will no doubt give him a lot of confidence ahead of his clash with the Serbian legend.
Minutes after securing the win over Opelka, Machac had already begun thinking up a game plan to take down Djokovic, but wasn’t willing to share it with the rest of the tennis world.
“I will not show up with my game preparation right now,” he said.
“It will be secret.”
He was, however, complimentary towards Djokovic, and more than aware of the task at hand.
“He’s the best, you never know with this guy, I try to play my game, we will see what’s going to happen,” said Machac.
“Really he’s the best.
“I will play against Novak, it will be a thing to think about when I stop playing tennis.
“I will really remember that moment if I will play against Novak.”
Machac and Djokovic are level at 1-1, in their head-to-head, with the Serb winning their first meeting in Dubai in 2023 before the Czech won a three-set battle in Geneva last year.
It remains to be seen who will come out on top when they face off at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time, but Djokovic will be aware that he’ll need to be at his best if he wants to beat Machac on Friday, January 17.
Related Topics
