‘Match to forget’ as Novak Djokovic wobbles into quarter-finals at Australian Open
Serb clocks up embarrassing 100 unforced errors before prevailing over Gilles Simon in five sets
Novak Djokovic called his win over Gilles Simon a “match to forget” after he clocked up an embarrassing 100 unforced errors before scraping into his 27th consecutive grand slam tennis quarter-final at the Australian Open in Melbourne on Sunday.
The 10-time major champion battled for four hours, 32 minutes before prevailing 6-3, 6-7 (1-7), 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 and will now face Japan’s Kei Nishikori in the last eight.
Actually, it gives me great joy to know that I can’t get worse than that, than what I played [against Simon]
It was a gruelling win for Djokovic, whose tennis was uncharacteristically ragged before he finally subdued the French 14th seed in the Rod Laver Arena thriller.
“Actually, it gives me great joy to know that I can’t get worse than that, than what I played today,” he smiled. “I was obviously pleased to win the match, but in terms of the performance itself, I haven’t done well at all.
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“Gilles Simon is one of the best counter-punchers on the tour and he likes to play long matches.
“I knew what to expect on the court. But I honestly didn’t expect to make this many unforced errors. It’s a match to forget for me.”