Novak Djokovic added another record with his latest win at the US Open on Wednesday night but admitted he needs to improve after an "awful" serving performance.
The four-time and defending champion led Laslo Djere 6-4, 6-4, 2-0 in their second-round match inside Arthur Ashe Stadium when his fellow Serb retired injured. It was Djokovic's 90th US Open match victory, becoming the first man to win 90 at all four Grand Slams.
While the scoreline might suggest a routine win, it was anything but for the second seed, who struggled on serve throughout, landing just 47 per cent of first serves, and he found himself 4-2 down in the second set.
"It's not what we want to see," Djokovic said of Djere's retirement. "He's such a good player in these conditions and the second set should have been his, he was 4-2 up. I don't know if winning the second set probably put more burden on him."
Djokovic, who underwent knee surgery in June, grabbed the first break of the match to take the first set 6-4 after a tense hour then sought treatment for trouble on his right side.
Djere, the only player to take a set off Djokovic at last year's US Open, gained the first break of the second set and with a 4-2 lead had two more break points that he couldn't convert.
But Djokovic won the next six games, Djere receiving treatment on his abdomen before Djokovic closed out the second.
"Overall it was a big fight – over two hours for two sets," Djokovic said. "I served awful. So playing without the serve, you have to grind, you have to run. I had to rely on my baseline game."
The Serbian superstar, coming off an emotional Paris Olympics triumph, next faces Australian Alexei Popyrin, whom he beat at the Australian Open and Wimbledon this year.
Gauff advances to third round
Women's defending champion Coco Gauff overcame her own struggles on serve to beat 37-year-old Tatjana Maria 6-4, 6-0.
It was an uneven performance from 20-year-old Gauff, who has endured an erratic season since capturing her maiden major in New York.
She put just 44 per cent of her first serves in play and had nine double faults, but the 99th-ranked Maria couldn't capitalise and Gauff won the last seven games to seal the win.
"I think I played well overall," Gauff said. "I think if I could have served better that first set would have been a lot easier."
Djokovic and Gauff missed the worst conditions of a steamy day that saw tournament organisers invoke the extreme weather rule allowing mid-match breaks.
Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka, runner-up to Gauff last year, didn't have to take advantage, polishing off Italian Lucia Bronzetti 6-3, 6-1 in an hour.
"I told myself you have to stay focused from the first point to the last point and make sure you're not going to stay here a crazy number of hours," Sabalenka said.
Fourth-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany advanced with a 6-4, 7-6, 6-1 victory over France's Alexandre Muller.
"I am happy to be done in three sets, to have some rest as it is very hot and tough conditions," said Zverev, who said he felt fine but "was at some point very wet."
Zverev next faces Argentina's Tomas Etcheverry, whose efforts to stay hydrated backfired during his 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3 victory over compatriot Francisco Cerundolo.
"You had to hydrate well, try to take as many salts and hydrates as possible and I overdid it, that's why I ended up vomiting," said Etcheverry, who fired 23 aces to finally seal the win after more than four hours. "It's dangerous not only for the players, but also for the public."
Sixth-seeded Russian Andrey Rublev and Czech Jiri Lehecka both battled through five sets to line up a third-round meeting.
Rublev, a four-time US Open quarter-finalist, beat France's Arthur Rinderknech 4-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 while Lehecka out-lasted American Mitchell Krueger 6-7, 0-6, 6-4, 6-4, 7-5.
Elsewhere, seventh-seeded Paris Olympics gold medallist Zheng Qinwen had to go the distance, rallying from a set down for the second straight match to beat Russian Erika Andreeva 6-7, 6-1, 6-2.
But eighth-seeded Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova became the biggest upset victim of the women's tournament so far, bounced 6-4, 7-5 by Romanian qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse.
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Cofe
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 80-100
Amount raised: $13m
Investors: KISP ventures, Cedar Mundi, Towell Holding International, Takamul Capital, Dividend Gate Capital, Nizar AlNusif Sons Holding, Arab Investment Company and Al Imtiaz Investment Group
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
European arms
Known EU weapons transfers to Ukraine since the war began: Germany 1,000 anti-tank weapons and 500 Stinger surface-to-air missiles. Luxembourg 100 NLAW anti-tank weapons, jeeps and 15 military tents as well as air transport capacity. Belgium 2,000 machine guns, 3,800 tons of fuel. Netherlands 200 Stinger missiles. Poland 100 mortars, 8 drones, Javelin anti-tank weapons, Grot assault rifles, munitions. Slovakia 12,000 pieces of artillery ammunition, 10 million litres of fuel, 2.4 million litres of aviation fuel and 2 Bozena de-mining systems. Estonia Javelin anti-tank weapons. Latvia Stinger surface to air missiles. Czech Republic machine guns, assault rifles, other light weapons and ammunition worth $8.57 million.
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
Leaderboard
63 - Mike Lorenzo-Vera (FRA)
64 - Rory McIlroy (NIR)
66 - Jon Rahm (ESP)
67 - Tom Lewis (ENG), Tommy Fleetwood (ENG)
68 - Rafael Cabrera-Bello (ESP), Marcus Kinhult (SWE)
69 - Justin Rose (ENG), Thomas Detry (BEL), Francesco Molinari (ITA), Danny Willett (ENG), Li Haotong (CHN), Matthias Schwab (AUT)
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAlmouneer%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202017%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dr%20Noha%20Khater%20and%20Rania%20Kadry%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EEgypt%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E120%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EBootstrapped%2C%20with%20support%20from%20Insead%20and%20Egyptian%20government%2C%20seed%20round%20of%20%3Cbr%3E%243.6%20million%20led%20by%20Global%20Ventures%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
EMIRATES'S%20REVISED%20A350%20DEPLOYMENT%20SCHEDULE
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEdinburgh%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20November%204%20%3Cem%3E(unchanged)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBahrain%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20November%2015%20%3Cem%3E(from%20September%2015)%3C%2Fem%3E%3B%20second%20daily%20service%20from%20January%201%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EKuwait%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20November%2015%20%3Cem%3E(from%20September%2016)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMumbai%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20October%2027)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAhmedabad%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20October%2027)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EColombo%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20January%202%20%3Cem%3E(from%20January%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMuscat%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cem%3E%20%3C%2Fem%3EMarch%201%3Cem%3E%20(from%20December%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ELyon%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20March%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20December%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBologna%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20March%201%20%3Cem%3E(from%20December%201)%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3ESource%3A%20Emirates%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company profile
Date started: 2015
Founder: John Tsioris and Ioanna Angelidaki
Based: Dubai
Sector: Online grocery delivery
Staff: 200
Funding: Undisclosed, but investors include the Jabbar Internet Group and Venture Friends
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Abu Dhabi GP schedule
Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
Another way to earn air miles
In addition to the Emirates and Etihad programmes, there is the Air Miles Middle East card, which offers members the ability to choose any airline, has no black-out dates and no restrictions on seat availability. Air Miles is linked up to HSBC credit cards and can also be earned through retail partners such as Spinneys, Sharaf DG and The Toy Store.
An Emirates Dubai-London round-trip ticket costs 180,000 miles on the Air Miles website. But customers earn these ‘miles’ at a much faster rate than airline miles. Adidas offers two air miles per Dh1 spent. Air Miles has partnerships with websites as well, so booking.com and agoda.com offer three miles per Dh1 spent.
“If you use your HSBC credit card when shopping at our partners, you are able to earn Air Miles twice which will mean you can get that flight reward faster and for less spend,” says Paul Lacey, the managing director for Europe, Middle East and India for Aimia, which owns and operates Air Miles Middle East.
If you go
The Flights
Emirates and Etihad fly direct to Johannesburg from Dubai and Abu Dhabi respectively. Economy return tickets cost from Dh2,650, including taxes.
The trip
Worldwide Motorhoming Holidays (worldwidemotorhomingholidays.co.uk) operates fly-drive motorhome holidays in eight destinations, including South Africa. Its 14-day Kruger and the Battlefields itinerary starts from Dh17,500, including campgrounds, excursions, unit hire and flights. Bobo Campers has a range of RVs for hire, including the 4-berth Discoverer 4 from Dh600 per day.
