Quentin Halis proved to be a surprisingly difficult opponent for Novak Djokovic, but the top favorite eventually advanced to the quarter-finals of the ATP Tour in Adelaide.

Novak Djokovic is in the quarters at ATP Adelaide after two tiebreaks with Quentin Halis

The Frenchman, who is ranked 64th in the ATP rankings, made a great start to the round of 16 match (he won the first return game), hitting impressive shots and leading 3-0 and 5-2.

The score on the table woke up the Serb, and Nole did not miss a single point in the next two games. Djokovic was emotionless in the tiebreak and won his first set 7-3.

Serving (11 aces in total) helped Quentin stay close to the former world leader in the second set as well. Galis saved two match points at 4-5 (15-40), but Jokerul again forced overtime and won the tiebreak 7-5. The game lasted almost two hours.

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A more difficult match awaits Djokovic (at least according to the opponent’s rating) against Denis Shapovalov (18 ATP, favorite 7). The Serb has won seven official meetings, and the only victory the Canadian won was at an exhibition tournament in 2019.

The ATP Adelaide 1 tournament will be held from January 1 to 8, is part of the ATP 250 category and has a total prize pool of $642,735. Novak Djokovic (1), Daniil Medvedev (3) and Andriy Rublev (4) remain the main favorites of the tournament.

ATP Adelaide Quarter Finals

Novak Djokovic (1) – Denis Shapovalov (7)

Daniil Medvedev (3) – Karen Khachanov (3)

Yannick Sinner (6) / Thanasi Kokkinakis – Sebastian Korda

Yoshihito Nishioka – Oleksiy Popyrin.

The result of the match Novak Djokovic – Quentin Galis