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TORONTO — Under a brooding sky and with a quick hard court beneath his feet, Novak Djokovic was in his element at the Rogers Cup last night.
The 21-year-old Serb trounced Frank Dancevic of Niagara Falls, Ont., with return shots that became more devastating as time went on, taking both sets 6-4, 6-4.
But Dancevic fought bravely, going point for point with the defending champion, particularly in the first set.
"I was aware that he doesn't have anything to lose," Djokovic said. "Big Canadian hope playing in front of his crowd and big support. A lot of people today. It was a really good atmosphere to play."
Tommy Haas of Germany serves to Carlos Moya of Spain at the Rogers Cup tennis tournament in Toronto. (Mark Blinch /Reuters)
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Not only did the capacity crowd at the Rexall Centre cheer Dancevic, but there were a large number of Serbian flags displayed as well. Djokovic even got a marriage proposal. (He said he didn't hear it.)
When Dancevic finally broke Djokovic's serve late in the second set, he made a fist and lightning streaked across the sky. Rainstorms caused delays earlier in the day, but held off last night.
The Canadian said the noise of the crowd did not hinder him, but actually helped him break Djokovic's serve.
"It was really awesome," he said. "I don't think you could fit a pin in that crowd. … I could hear that people were yelling at the top of their lungs at the end."
Despite the loss, Dancevic easily outperformed his rankings. Slotted at No. 82 in the world, the 23-year-old Canadian got to the second round by defeating 24th-ranked Mario Ancic on Monday.
"He took [2008 Wimbledon champion Rafael] Nadal in the quarter-finals to three sets, so obviously that shows how good a player he is," said Djokovic, the world's third-ranked men's tennis player. "But I did everything I needed to do, so I'm happy."
Roger Federer and Nadal, the top two players in the world, begin their Rogers Cup singles matches today.
Djokovic may not have the biggest serve in the business, but he was cool and calculating and his shots varied and precise. Dancevic could only hope to sneak in some clever shots when he had the chance.
Dancevic was impressed with the way that 6-foot-1 Djokovic moved.
"I felt like he was really on balance and ready for every ball that I hit," the Canadian said. "He never seemed like he was surprised. … He put pressure on me to go for bigger shots and to go closer to the lines. … That's what made me miss a little bit today."
Djokovic said he watched Dancevic play against Ancic and noticed he played wisely and returned shots well. Last night, however, Dancevic played rather defensively, Djokovic said, especially in the baseline rallies.
"I took advantage of it," Djokovic said. "I tried to be patient, wait for my opportunities. I knew I was going to get those, but I wanted to be aggressive at the same time, not to allow him to take advantage of the shots and get to the net.
"I know in those moments, he is the most dangerous. That's what he did [against Ancic]."
Dancevic had moments of brilliance, but Djokovic never allowed him to settle into a rhythm.
"Novak today felt like he was just on top of his game from the first ball," Dancevic said. "It felt like his returns were getting better as the match went on."
After winning the Australian Open and defeating all the top-ranked players earlier in the season, Djokovic suffered a second-round loss at Wimbledon this month.
"It was a bad tournament for me," he said. "Just nothing went the right way.
"I just tried not to think about it."
Dancevic is the only Canadian ranked in the top 100, and with his defeat, there are no Canadians left in the singles tournament aside from Dancevic's doubles partner, Jesse Levine.
Levine was born in Ottawa, but resides in, and plays internationally for, the United States. He took his first-round match against Peter Polansky of Thornhill, Ont., 6-2, 6-4 yesterday. Levine will next play Nadal today on Centre Court.
"I think that Canadian tennis was struggling a little bit in the past five to 10 years," Dancevic said. "But we've got a whole new development structure."
Tennis Canada president Michael Downey has brought in experts from around the world, Dancevic said, "and really made an awesome structure for junior tennis.
"I think we'll see a lot more [Canadian-born] top-100 players in the future. It's a little bit disappointing that I'm the only one, but I think that in the near future … we will have quite a few more."
