Novak Djokovic hints he may be back to his best as Serb rampant in Astana Open win | Tennis | Sport

Djokovic earned his most dominant victory of the 2022 season as he made his Astana Open debut, dropping just two games to advance to the second round. The fifth seed came to the brand-new tournament fresh off the back of winning his 89th title in Tel Aviv last week.

And the 35-year-old admitted that it made a world of difference to arrive in Kazakhstan with another title under his belt as opposed to losing in the final as he hinted that he was back to his best level following almost three months away from competition when he was unable to play the North American hard-court swing because of his unvaccinated status. “I mean from the start to the end it was great performance,” Djokovic said after getting off to a winning start in Astana.

“And playing in a new tournament, different conditions, first match, it’s never easy looking to see how you’re going to adapt but I did it perfectly really. I played as well as I can, made him work and used every opportunity presented to me.”

JUST IN: Rafa Nadal was denied ‘extraordinary’ season after ‘bittersweet’ woes