Dusan Lajovic admits that the majority of the crowd will not be on his side when he takes on Novak Djokovic in the quarter-final of the Banja Luka Open later this week.
Lajovic, who is currently ranked 70th in the world, stormed to a comprehensive 6-3, 6-0, win over France’s Grégoire Barrère in just over an hour. The 32-year-old impressively won the last nine games played in the match. It is his sixth win over a top 60 player this season and he has improved his win-loss record in second round matches to 5-1.
“I was a little more nervous than usual this morning. I analyzed too much at the beginning of the match about what was happening and whether I might play with Novak (Djokovic) tomorrow… When I focused only on the court and what I needed to do, it was better, every match requires something different,” Lajovic said afterwards.
“I’ve been in good shape lately – confidence is hard to come by and easy to lose, so you have to embrace every moment.” He added.
The Tour veteran closed out his latest match by winning 24 points in a row which he believes is something he has never done before. Lajovic made his ATP main draw debut back in 2010 and reached a high of No.23 back in 2019. He is also a former finalist at the Monte Carlo Masters.
“I don’t know if that has ever happened to me.” He said of his 24-point winning streak. “In the second set, I managed to do the right things. What I planned from the beginning of the match. When he saw that there was no solution, he tried everything or nothing, and in these conditions, it is difficult to do that, so he missed a lot.”
Lajovic will next take on compatriot Djokovic who has been struggling with his form. The world No.1 suffered a shock loss in Monte Carlo to Lorenzo Musetti last week and is currently coping with an elbow issue which he admits is ‘not ideal.’ Djokovic played his second round match on Wednesday when he bounced back from a set down to defeat Luca Van Assche.
The two Serbian players have locked horns on the Tour only twice before with their most recent meeting being back in 2018. Djokovic won both of those encounters in straight sets.
“For sure, a lot more people will be rooting for Nole in our match, but that’s nothing new. I hope I can enjoy the atmosphere,” Lajovic commented.
“He got me pretty smoothly last time (and) it’s going to be a big challenge. I will try to relax”
The last player from the same country as Djokovic to have beaten him on the ATP Tour was Janko Tipsarevic at the 2012 Madrid Open.
