Novak Djokovic dodged a bullet as he saved a match point to beat Tomas Berdych 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-3) to begin his run at the World Tour Finals. But the Serb who has been plagued by injury problems over the past several months was just glad to be on the court at the year-end event.
“This was my toughest match probably since the US Open,” said the relieved No. 1 who added: “I wasn’t very satisfied with my performance -I know I wasn’t playing on top of my game.”
But the good news for Djokovic was how his dodgy right shoulder held up under the pressure of a battle lasting for nearly three hours against the Czech in Group A.
“To be honest, it feels good, that’s something that I’m happy about,” said Djokovic, “I haven’t felt any pain in my shoulder. I’ve been feeling well on the court.”
“Obviously, I feel a little bit exhausted, because the match was almost three hours. It’s normal. But I think I’m physically fit. And I just need to get some things better in my game for the next challenge.”
Djokovic was beaten due to the shoulder in the Basel semi-finals and had to withdraw prior to a Paris Bercy quarter-final against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga with the physical complaint. Before that, he went down with an abdominal injury during Davis Cup in September after winning the US Open.
“DAILY TENNIS NEWS”