Novak Djokovic nailed down an overwhelming 19-0 record over Gael Monfils as he dismissed his longtime rival 6-3, 6-2 in the third round of the Cincinnati Masters on Thursday.
The Serb second seed took barely an hour to get the late-night job done against the opponent he has faced since junior days,
The pair of 36-year-olds were mismatched on the day, with No. 211 Monfils still coming back from months of knee problems.
He reached the quarter-finals last week in Toronto, losing to eventual champion Jannik Sinner.
Djokovic claimed a lead of a set and 5-0 but was broken while serving for the win; he bounced back to conclude the evening two games later.
Djokovic will next play Taylor Fritz, who advanced 5-0 when Dusan Lajovic retired with a toe injury.
“Gael is one of the most athletic guys on the Tour and he showed that in the first set,” Djokovic said. “Every ball comes back from him.
“I served well and made him play. After the first break I didn’t look back and raised my level.
“I had an almost flawless second set. Hopefully I can keep it going.”
Main photo:- Novak Djokovic winning in Cincy – ATPTour.com
