Djokovic beat American qualifier Bjorn Fratangelo 7-6 (5), 6-2 in hunt of a record sixth title in the desert. And enters straight to the Third round of the match. It was Djokovic's 50th match win at the tournament, his highest total at any ATP Masters 1000 event.
As World No. 128 served for the opening set at 5-4 and held a mini-break lead at 5/4 in the tie-break. But Djokovic was rock solid in the biggest moments, ousting Fratangelo after one hour and 29 minutes in his first match since earning a record seventh Australian Open crown in January.
He jogged over to greet former World No. 1 Pete Sampras in the front row after match point.
Djokovic of Serbia will face Philipp Kohlschreiber of Germany in the next round, who beat Nick Kyrgios of Australia. Kohlschreiber defeated the 31st seed 6-4, 6-4 in one hour and 14 minutes, evening their ATP Head2Head series at 1-1, to set a clash against the top seed.
"Credit to him. He played well and had nothing to lose. I thought his backhand was terrific, and he was taking it on the rise," Djokovic said. "The first set was just hanging on to the ropes and trying to win that set. Then the second set, obviously with the first set under my belt, was slightly better. I ended the match in a positive fashion."
While it was tricky at first, Djokovic made a good start in front of a packed stadium. He won 74 percent of his service points, while Fratangelo was able to claim just 54 percent of points on his delivery. The American did well to play relaxed, aggressive tennis to take the lead early, but Djokovic's consistency in rallies and steadiness in level proved too much. Djokovic joked that having Sampras in the first row affected him.
"I have to admit I was a bit nervous. I don't get to see Pete that often. I was pleasantly surprised to see him watching my match. It's a thrill, obviously, to see someone that I looked up to when I was a kid. I think I tried too hard in the first set to impress him," Djokovic said, cracking a laugh. "It was really nice, and I went up to him and I thanked him for coming."
