Novak Djokovic finally breaks into the fourth round of Indian Wells after 9 years

JAKARTA - Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic finally ended a nine-year long wait at the Indian Wells Masters tournament after securing a place in the fourth round for the first time since 2017.

Djokovic advanced to the phase after defeating American Aleksandar Kovacevic with a score of 6-4, 1-6, 6-4, Tuesday, March 10.

The former world number one had to go through a three-set match again, after previously also undergoing a tough match in the opening round against Kamil Majchrzak.

"It was a great performance from Aleks. We know each other. We speak the same language. His whole family is Serbian," Djokovic said as quoted by the ATP Tour.

"It's nice to see him playing well. He has played a great tournament so far. I knew before the match that if he served well and chose the right point, it would be difficult to break his serve. And that's what happened," he said.

Djokovic, who is a five-time champion at the Indian Wells Masters - the same number as tennis legend Roger Federer - admitted that he had trouble finding his best form at the tournament held in the California desert in recent seasons.

In last year's edition, he was even surprisingly eliminated in the first round after being defeated by Dutch player Botic van de Zandschulp.

Meanwhile, in this year's opening match, Djokovic also had to fight hard while overcoming physical discomfort before finally eliminating Majchrzak.

However, the 38-year-old managed to pass a tough test in his 17th appearance at Indian Wells.

In the next round, Djokovic is scheduled to face British tennis player Jack Draper, who previously defeated Francisco Cerundolo with a score of 6-1, 7-5.

"To be honest, I don't always enjoy this match," Djokovic said when asked about the duel against Kovacevic.

"But to win so hard is the important thing. I'm happy to overcome today's challenges," he said.

In the match, Kovacevic, who first met his idol Djokovic at Flushing Meadows in 2005, gave a fierce fight throughout the match.

He even impressed in the second set by taking advantage of Djokovic's decline in the middle of the match.

In the deciding set, Djokovic managed to stabilize the game and find his rhythm, although he was seen holding his ankle after a long rally in the third game.

Based on ATP Tour statistics, this victory makes Djokovic record 34 wins from the last 35 matches after winning the first set.

The only defeat in that span came against world number one Carlos Alcaraz in the Australian Open final last January.

With the result, Djokovic also became the second oldest tennis player to reach the fourth round of an ATP Masters 1000 tournament since this format began in 1990. The record was only lost to Ivo Karlovic who achieved a similar feat at Indian Wells in 2019 at the age of 40.