Australian Open: Dennis Novak defeats Grigor Dimitrov at Grand Slam debut

Dennis Novak dropped out of the Australian Open 2018 as expected in round one: The Austrian qualifier was defeated by one of the co-favorites, Grigor Dimitrov, with 3:6,2:6 and 1:6.

No sign of nervousness at first: Dennis Novak played his first service game like a seasoned veteran, managed to equalize 1:1 without any problems. Dimitrov, who failed last year in an epic semi-final match against Rafael Nadal, slowly grooved in, scoring five set points at 5-2 – all defended by Novak. After 35 minutes, however, the Bulgarian made the win of the first round clear with his own extra charge, even though he needed three more set points.

For the first time in his career, the Lower Austrian had qualified for the main field of a Grand Slam tournament, his appearance at the Rod Laver Arena was a bonus for this performance.

Dimitrov, who had most recently won the ATP World Tour final at the O2 Arena in London, also managed an early break in the second set – and showed his world class in the few tricky situations. Also and above all with the serve, which turned out to be especially effective when Novak came close to a break point.

With the continuation of the match Dimitrov became more and more superior, unpacked some highlight shots if necessary. Novak, who had prepared himself for the 2018 season together with his buddy Dominic Thiem, fought to the end, but after just over an hour and a half had to admit defeat to the number three world. Dimitrov scored his second match point and in round two he will face either Elias Ymer from Sweden or the American Mackenzie McDonald.