Djokovic start his Olympic gold pursuit with emphatic win

Novak Djokovic’s quest for an elusive Olympic gold medal commenced emphatically with a dominant 6-0, 6-1 victory over Matthew Ebden. The Serbian tennis superstar, who has captured almost every accolade in the sport but never surpassed his bronze medal finish at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, took just 54 minutes to overcome Australia’s Ebden. This match marked Ebden’s return to singles competition after a two-year hiatus.

Ebden just asked people in the crowd if they wanted to play against Djokovic instead of him 😭😂

Down 0-6 0-2, although, to be fair, Matthew hasn’t played a singles match in TWO YEARS 😅 pic.twitter.com/rQgIxx361j

— Olly 🎾🇬🇧 (@Olly_Tennis_) July 27, 2024

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Despite the lopsided scoreline, Ebden won the admiration of the crowd with his good-natured response to the unfolding match.

Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion and the top seed in Paris, might encounter his long-time rival Rafael Nadal in an upcoming round. Nadal, representing Spain, is scheduled to play against Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics later this week.

Additionally, Carlos Alcaraz, the reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion, also advanced swiftly, defeating Lebanon’s Hady Habib 6-3, 6-1.