Novak Djokovic made history once again on Sunday, becoming the oldest man to reach the quarter-finals of all four Grand Slams tournaments in a single year. The 38-year-old breezed past Jan-Lennard Struff with a straight-sets win: 6-3, 6-3, 6-2.
However, the victory came with a personal sacrifice, as the match fell on his daughter’s birthday. “She wasn’t very happy about it. Don’t remind me,” Djokovic said afterwards. “I’ll try to win and give her that kind of present. I’m also sending some surprises to her party.”
Djokovic dominated from start to finish, breaking Struff’s serve six times and serving 12 aces. He won 79% of points on his first serve and outclassed one of the tournament’s top servers.
The German, ranked 144th in the world, had previously beaten two seeded players but couldn’t trouble the Serbian star, managing just 19 winners and making 32 unforced errors.
Their combined age made it the oldest men’s singles match in a US Open fourth round or later during the Open Era.
Djokovic did receive treatment on his shoulder and forearm but didn’t seem hampered. He now looks ahead to a quarter-final against Taylor Fritz, saying he’s taking things one match at a time.
