NEW YORK, NEW YORK - AUGUST 27: Novak Djokovic of Serbia returns against Zachary Svajda of the United States during their Men's Singles Second Round match on Day Four of the 2025 US Open at USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 27, 2025 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City.

Djokovic drops 1st set but advances to 3rd round of US Open

Clive Brunskill / Getty Images Sport / Getty

NEW YORK (AP) — Novak Djokovic overcame a slow start to beat Zachary Svajda 6-7 (5), 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 on Wednesday, remaining unbeaten for his career in the first two rounds of the U.S. Open.

Djokovic appeared to be laboring physically early in the match, as he was at times in his first-round victory. But after getting broken to fall behind 3-1 in the third set, he finally began looking like the player who has won a men’s-record 24 Grand Slam titles, including four of them in New York.

The No. 7-seeded Djokovic won the next eight games against the American qualifier to open a 3-0 lead in the fourth set and eventually closed it out in just 26 minutes after the first set took an hour.

The 38-year-old Djokovic has reached the third round in all 19 appearances in New York.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

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