Khachanov, who is eyeing a return to the world top 10 for the first time since October 2019, owns a 1-4 head-to-head record against Djokovic, whose sole defeat to the Russian came in the Paris Masters final three-and-a-half years ago. "I'm very happy for him after a tough few weeks for him, especially in the beginning of the year." "It's great to see him here, he played a great match," Polish No.5 seed Hubert Hurkacz said following his 6-3, 6-1 win over Alexander Bublik in the first round on Tuesday. The world No.1 said he has been given a positive reception by the players in the Dubai locker room this week.
So let's see what happens."ĭjokovic made his 2022 season debut on Monday, beating Italian wildcard Lorenzo Musetti 6-3, 6-3 in what was his first match since getting deported from Australia last month. "But if we speak in general, of course not seeing him in many tournaments as a world No.1, it will be tough for him to maybe stay there and to find the rhythm also. "Obviously it would be for sure better if he can play a normal season and he can go everywhere but I think he has his team around him, he has his own decisions and he'll stick to them. It's a very delicate situation where it's basically his (Djokovic's) decision he needs to stand with his decisions and I respect that a lot," Khachanov told AFP on Tuesday. On Monday, Andy Murray said he did not agree with Djokovic's stance against vaccination but believed "it would be better for tennis if he was playing all of the major events".