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Novak Djokovic Triumphs on Home Soil for Third Time, Korda Captures First Title of His Career

Novak Djokovic (C) of Serbia poses with the trophy and volunteers after winning his final match against Alex Molcan of Slovakia at the Belgrade Open tennis tournament in Belgrade, Serbia, 29 May 2021. EPA-EFE/ANDREJ CUKIC



By Ricky Dimon

Novak Djokovic triumphed for the third time on home soil when he defeated qualifier Alex Molcan 6-4, 6-3 in the Belgrade Open final on Saturday afternoon. Djokovic, who last lifted a trophy at home in Serbia 10 years ago, got the job done after one hour and 28 minutes.

The world No. 1 was broken an alarming four times throughout the match, but he made up for it with six breaks of his own.

“It’s been a while since I last played (a final) here in front of the crowd,” Djokovic reflected. “It’s a wonderful feeling to be holding the trophy again after 10 years. It couldn’t be a better leadup to Roland Garros. It was great that I got to spend the week before Roland Garros here and play some great tennis.”

Novak Djokovic (L) of Serbia poses with the trophy after winning his final match against Alex Molcan (R) of Slovakia at the Belgrade Open tennis tournament in Belgrade, Serbia, 29 May 2021. EPA-EFE/ANDREJ CUKIC



Molcan, ranked 255th, had never won a main-tour match prior to this week.

“I will try to enjoy the second place (finish) for the next (few) days,” the 23-year-old Czech commented.



Meanwhile, Sebastian Korda was even more dominant at the Emilia-Romagna Open than Djokovic was in Belgrade. Korda did not drop a single set all week or even get pushed to a tiebreaker. The 20-year-old American capped off his impressive run with a 6-2, 6-4 victory over Marco Cecchinato on Saturday afternoon.

It is Korda’s first career ATP title in his second final (lost to Hubert Hurkacz earlier this season in Delray Beach).

“This is something that I’ve dreamed of,” the world No. 63 noted. “I really thought I was going to get it done in Delray Beach [earlier this year], and I was a little heartbroken. But I stayed positive, even with such a bad first part of the clay-court season. I took a couple of days off, recharged my batteries, and had a really good practice week in Prague with my dad and my coach. I came back hungrier, and I’m playing some really good tennis now.”

Both Djokovic and Korda will now take their talents to the French Open. Djokovic is in the same half as Rafael Nadal, while Korda could run into Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round.

Ricky contributes to 10sballs.com and also maintains his own tennis website, The Grandstand. You can follow him on twitter at @Dimonator.