Novak Djokovic remained on course for a third Qatar ExxonMobil Open title after rallying from a set down to beat Marton Fucsovics 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 on Wednesday.
The two-time champion, who improves to 14-1 in Doha, was tested throughout the opening two sets, but managed to win 67 per cent of second-serve return points in the final set (14/21) to book his place in the quarter-finals. Djokovic’s only loss in Doha came on his debut in 2015, falling in three sets to Ivo Karlovic in the quarter-finals.
In 2016, Djokovic did not drop a set en route to his maiden crown in Qatar, beating Tomas Berdych and Rafael Nadal in back-to-back matches to clinch the title. The following year, Djokovic retained the trophy with hard fought three-set wins over Fernando Verdasco and Andy Murray.
Djokovic will meet 2018 runner-up Andrey Rublev or fifth seed Nikoloz Basilashvili for a place in the semi-finals. The World No. 1 owns a 1-0 FedEx ATP Head2Head record against Basilashvili and has never met Rublev at tour-level.
In a tense opening set, Fucsovics started with confidence before making the decisive move at 4-4. The Geneva champion pushed Djokovic to the limit in extended rallies, with the World No. 1 needing all his defensive skill and variety to keep pace. But, after saving two break points, Djokovic was unable to contain his opponent much longer. Fucsovics eventually broke serve on his third break point of the game with a driven backhand up the line before holding his nerve to serve out the set to love.
Fucsovics maintained his level in the second set, trading blows with Djokovic in baseline rallies and finding success on his forehand side. But Djokovic managed to raise his level when it mattered most. The 72-time tour-level titlist found his range on his forehand side, earning two set points with a sharp-angled forehand winner before clinching the set in dramatic fashion as Fucsovics made an ill-judged Hawk Eye challenge on a Djokovic forehand which clipped the baseline.
Djokovic rode the momentum into the third set, holding serve comfortably to 15 before capitalising on back-to-back forehand errors from his opponent to break for a 2-0 lead. A second break soon followed after a confident love service hold and, despite surrendering one of his service breaks, Djokovic immediately regained his double-break advantage before closing out the match. The Serbian converted his first match point with a backhand winner up the line.
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