Novak Djokovic expressed that his decisive victory over Australian Matthew Ebden in only 53 minutes at the Olympics was ‘not a good image’ for tennis, calling for a change in the rules.
Throughout most of the afternoon on Court Philippe Chatrier, it was a tough outing for Perth’s 36-year-old doubles player Ebden, who was competing in his first tour-level singles match in two years.
Brought into the tournament as a last-minute substitute, Ebden was always aware that facing the 24-time Grand Slam champion was a ‘mission impossible.’
Despite being down 6-0, 4-0, the crowd cheered him on relentlessly to secure his first game, and when he finally held serve, he beamed with joy, raised his arms, and lifted his yellow Australia shirt to celebrate.
“I feel sorry for Matt,” he shared, mentioning that Ebden told him at the net it was his first match in two years and that he has officially retired from singles competition.
“It’s clear he’s concentrating on doubles, so it was challenging for him.”
The Serbian superstar felt that the match lacked sense.
“Honestly, I don’t grasp the rules,” he commented.
Novak Djokovic says his decisive victory over Aussie Matthew Ebden in just 53 minutes at the Olympics was ‘not a good image’
Matt Ebden was playing his first tour-level singles match for two years
“It doesn’t seem logical to me that if someone withdraws from singles, they call up a doubles player to compete in singles.
“To be honest, I don’t think it presents a good image for the sport. There are many singles players who had ample time to prepare and could have been called up.”
“This aspect baffles me completely. I hope the ITF (International Tennis Federation) and the Olympics will revise this rule because it was tough on Matt.
“He hasn’t played singles in two years.”
Another Australian faced a similar fate later when Rinky Hijikata was defeated 6-2, 6-1 by fourth seed Daniil Medvedev.
For Djokovic, this match served as a gentle warm-up for a potential second-round clash with Rafael Nadal, who must first overcome Marton Fucsovics in his initial contest.
“There’s a lot of excitement surrounding that match,” Djokovic said with a smile.
“It has the potential to be a blockbuster, one of the most anticipated events at this Olympics, and I’m looking forward to what could be our final encounter on this court.”
The Serb superstar hopes for rule changes as they seem illogical
Nadal later indicated uncertainty about participating in the singles, as he intends to maximize his chances for a medal.
This medal objective likely involves playing doubles alongside Carlos Alcaraz, as the star Spanish duo secured a win against Argentina’s Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni 7-6 (7-4), 6-4.
Alcaraz also triumphed in his singles match, dominating Lebanon’s Hady Habib 6-3, 6-1 on the rain-affected covered Court Suzanne Lenglen.
Two additional Australians were eliminated, as Daria Saville and Ellen Perez fell to American top seeds Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula 6-3, 6-1.
In the women’s singles, four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka, who lit the Olympic flame at Tokyo, lost in the first round to another multi-slam winner, Angelique Kerber, with a score of 7-5, 6-3.
She seemed to injure her left leg at 4-3 in the second set, failing to secure another game.
“I suppose I need to relearn how to win. Perhaps I’ve forgotten how,” Osaka reflected.
After taking breaks from the sport for mental health reasons and childbirth, the former world No. 1 is currently ranked 100th.
Iga Swiatek, the three-time reigning French Open champion, also advanced along with Wimbledon runner-up Jasmine Paolini.
