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Match Details
Fixture: (1) Novak Djokovic vs Aleksandar Vukic
Date: March 9, 2024
Tournament: BNP Paribas Open
Round: Second Round (Round of 64)
Venue: Indian Wells Tennis Garden, California, US
Category: ATP Masters 1000
Surface: Outdoor hardcourt
Prize Money: $8,995,555
Live Telecast: USA - Tennis Channel/TC Plus | UK - Sky Sports | Canada - TSN
Novak Djokovic vs Aleksandar Vukic preview
Top seed Novak Djokovic will face off against Aleksandar Vukic in the second round of the 2024 BNP Paribas Open on Saturday.
Djokovic kicked off the new season by participating in the United Cup for the first time. He defeated Zhizhen Zhang and Jiri Lehecka to help Serbia get out of the group stage. He lost his singles tie against Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-4 in the quarterfinals which led to Serbia's elimination from the tournament.
Djokovic then headed to Melbourne to defend his Australian Open title. He commenced his quest for a record 25th Major crown with a four-set win over Dino Prizmic. He then ousted Alexei Popyrin, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Adrian Mannarino, and Taylor Fritz to make the semifinals.
Djokovic faced Jannik Sinner for a place in the final but lost to him 6-1, 6-2, 6-7 (6), 6-3. It marked his first defeat at the venue since his fourth-round loss to Hyeon Chung in 2018. He'll now make his first appearance at Indian Wells since the 2019 edition and received a first-round bye as the top seed.
Vukic kicked off his Indian Wells campaign against Shintaro Mochizuki. He blew a 3-0 lead in the first set but regrouped down the line to come out on top in the tie-break to take the set.
Vukic was on the back foot for most of the second set but kept on fighting, which paid off eventually. He rallied from 4-1 down to force a tie-break, in which he turned the tables on Mochizhuki once again to win the match 7-6 (4), 7-6 (6).
Novak Djokovic vs Aleksandar Vukic head-to-head
This will be the first meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Novak Djokovic vs Aleksandar Vukic odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Novak Djokovic vs Aleksandar Vukic prediction
Djokovic is on the hunt for his first title of the season. With the in-form Sinner being in the other half of the draw, the Serb has a great shot at making the final at the very least. He's a five-time champion at Indian Wells, a record he shares with his former rival Roger Federer.
While Djokovic's results have been pretty good this year, he certainly won't be satisfied with just that. He'll be extra motivated after his loss to Sinner at the Australian Open.
Vukic did well to get past Mochizuki in the previous round but given his form, he's not going to threaten Djokovic in any manner. The Australian has won just a couple of matches this year and has never beaten a top-10 player before. The World No. 1 will be favored to make a triumphant return at Indian Wells.
Pick: Novak Djokovic to win in straight sets.
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