Djokovic sees off Karatsev to ease into Last-16

Novak Djokovic celebrates a a point against Russia’s Aslan Karatsev. Pic/AFP

Novak Djokovic's love affair with Rome continued as the five-time champion picked up his 60th victory at the Italian Open with a 6-3, 6-2 success over Aslan Karatsev on Tuesday. The Serb has never lost before the quarter-finals at the tournament and is now just three victories shy of joining the 1,000 match-wins club.

"He probably has the biggest calf we have in tennis. Very strong guy, just solid from the baseline," Djokovic said of the 35th-ranked Karatsev. "You never know with him. If he's feeling the ball, he can be very dangerous because he stays so close to the line, puts pressure on his opponents."

Karatsev committed 36 unforced errors during the match and Djokovic made sure to capitalise on those mistakes. "He was missing a lot of points today though, gave me a couple of breaks there in the first and second. "I'll take this win for sure," continued the Serb.

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