Paris [France], May 25 : 24-time Grand Slam champion Serbian icon Novak Djokovic survived an opening round scare to secure a come-from-behind win over local star Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the first round of the French Open on Sunday night.
Djokovic beat Giovanni 5-7, 7-5, 6-1, 6-4 to book his second round spot and broke the record with his 82nd appearance in the men's singles main draw at the Grand Slams, surpassing legend Roger Federer (81). He improved his record in the first round to 80 wins and two losses, losing a Grand Slam opener as far as the 2006 Australian Open, as per ATP's official website.
In their maiden ATP head-to-head clash, Djokovic struggled with the Frenchman's serve and made some errors, which affected his rhythm. Giovanni was well-supported by the home crowd and fended off nine break points in the second set before Djokovic converted on his 10th chance to level the match.
"In the first set, zero chance really on his serve," Djokovic said as quoted by ATP's official website. "He has one of the most tremendous serves in terms of precision and speed that I have ever faced in my career," added the multi-time Grand Slam winning icon awed by his opponent's serve.
However, once the three-time French Open champion took the breakthrough, there was no looking back as he was able to read Giovanni's game better and secured a win in two hours and 51 minutes. This helped him earn his 102nd win at the French Open.
"This is not the ideal strategy of coming into Roland Garros with one match on clay," Djokovic shared, playing only his second clay tournament of the season.
"That was not part of the plan. But it was a situation that I had to accept with the circumstances of being injured. It is what it is. I got myself prepared for Paris, and I was always planning to come and try my best," he added.
This is his 22nd successive French Open appearance, and Djokovic will next face Valentin Royer. The 24-year-old beat Hugo Dellien 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 in one hour and 58 minutes.