Third seed Novak Djokovic survived a four-set thriller as the Serbian huffed and puffed his way to the quarterfinal of the US Open with a hard-earned 7-5 7-6 (7-2) 6-7 (6-8) 6-1 victory against a spirited Juan Monaco.
Relieved after taming Monaco, Djokovic admitted
I had to fight hard for every point against him (Monaco) and I can say that I am pretty happy with my performance.
I played my best tennis at the most important moments and I served really well. I had soreness in my back and had to call the trainer.
He now locks horn with Carlos Moya, who beat Ernests Gulbis 7-5 6-2 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 to reach the quarters.
Monaco was not ready to concede an inch without putting up a fight and that made things difficult for Djokovic. Going neck-and-neck in the first set till the 11th game, Djokovic broke his opponent in the 12th to pocket the first set and prevailed in the second set also after it was stretched to a tie-breaker.
Monaco, however, refused to give in. He staged a brilliant comeback in the third set by winning the tie-breaker to stay afloat in the match.
Sensing danger, Djokovic raised his game, while Monaco seemed to have run out of steam after that high-voltage third set. Djokovic was quick to seize the initiative and he dropped just one game before pocketing the set and the match.
