'Incredible' teen qualifier takes set off Djokovic in thriller

MELBOURNE, Jan 14 (AFP): An error-strewn Novak Djokovic kickstarted his bid for an 11th Australian Open and unprecedented 25th Grand Slam crown in unconvincing fashion on Sunday, dropping a set to "incredible" teenage qualifier Dino Prizmic.
The Serbian superstar struggled to impose himself against the confident Croat on Rod Laver Arena before finally taming the 18-year-old 6-2, 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-4 after a four-hour marathon.
While far from his best, the world number one showed no sign of the right wrist problem that hampered his build-up. "Well, I started off very well for a 36-year-old guy. But, geez, when you think about it, I'm double his age," Djokovic said.
"Reality hit hard tonight," he added, smiling. "But credit to him, he had an incredible game plan, he had an answer to everything.
"I had some good moments and other moments I wish I could have played better. Physically, I'm still finding myself on court."
Djokovic surged to the title last year with a three-set victory over this year's seventh seed, Stefanos Tsitsipas.
If he does the same again, he will pass Australian Margaret Court's all-time Slam record and join only Court (Australian Open) and Rafael Nadal (French Open) in winning 11 times at a single major.
Victory stretched his record at Melbourne Park to 90-8 as he reached the second round for a 17th consecutive year.