Djokovic turns Athens homecoming into triumph over Tabilo
Novak Djokovic channels crowd energy and tactical adjustments to overcome Alejandro Tabilo in his Greek professional debut, securing a hard-fought opener and a dominant finish that extends his legacy.
On a charged Tuesday evening in Athens, Novak Djokovic stepped onto the court for his first professional match in Greece at the Vanda Pharmaceuticals Hellenic Championship. The 38-year-old Serbian, who recently relocated to the city, faced a familiar challenge from Alejandro Tabilo, the left-handed Chilean who had defeated him twice on clay this year and last. With the indoor hard courts quickening the pace, Djokovic absorbed the lively atmosphere, drawing strength from the crowd to reverse the narrative and claim a 7-6(3), 6-1 victory that denied Tabilo a chance to join Roger Federer as the only player to start their ATP Head2Head series against him with three straight wins.
Absorbing pressure in the opener
The first set tested Djokovic’s patience as Tabilo probed with deep returns and crosscourt forehands, forcing the top seed to construct points methodically from the baseline. Djokovic leaned on his movement to redirect pace, mixing inside-out forehands with slice backhands to disrupt the Chilean’s rhythm, but Tabilo held serve steadily, pushing the set to a tiebreak at 6-6. There, the Serb sharpened his focus, firing an inside-in forehand winner at a critical juncture before sealing the 7-6(3) win with a down-the-line pass, activating his flawless 28-0 record this year after taking the opening set and thrilling the home crowd with his precision under tension.
“Playing against Tabilo, who I had never won against,” Djokovic said. “We played two times on clay court, this year and last year and he won both of these matches. I was more under tension before the match than some other matches and I really tried to draw the energy from the crowd.”
“It feels really at home, playing in Athens,” Djokovic added. “A few months ago when I came here with my family, I was very excited because I have always loved Greece. Serbians love Greece, for sure. Historically, culturally, and religiously, we have a lot of things connecting us. Athens is in my heart, no question about it.”
That personal connection fueled his adjustments on the faster surface, where the indoor hard courts reduced the time for Tabilo’s topspin to build, allowing Djokovic to step inside the baseline more aggressively on returns and force errors in extended rallies.
Commanding the second-set rhythm
With the tiebreak secured, Djokovic settled into a dominant groove, his serve gaining depth and angles that pinned Tabilo back, opening the court for one–two combinations of crosscourt backhands followed by inside-out forehands. The Chilean struggled to transition his clay aggression to the quicker bounce, yielding breaks as unforced errors mounted under sustained pressure from the Serb’s net approaches laced with underspin. By the 6-1 close, the 24-time major champion had advanced to his 225th tour-level quarterfinal across 25 countries, easing doubts about his late-season fitness while showcasing the mental edge that defines his enduring run at 38.
225 and counting
The 24-time major champ powers past Tabilo 7-6(3) 6-1 to secure his 225th tour-level quarter-final! #HellenicChampionship | @DjokerNole pic.twitter.com/L13T676PC3— ATP Tour (@atptour) November 4, 2025
This milestone victory, marked by tactical shifts like varied serve placement to neutralize Tabilo’s lefty kick, highlighted how the ATP 250 event’s consistent conditions favored Djokovic’s baseline mastery, setting him up for a quarterfinal against Portugal’s Nuno Borges or American qualifier Eliot Spizzirri, where further hard-court refinements could propel his momentum.
Other results stir the draw
Elsewhere in the Greek capital, Sebastian Korda staged a comeback against Damir Dzumhur, dropping the first set 4-6 before taking the next two 6-3, 6-3 to reach his sixth hard-court quarterfinal of 2025, tying Taylor Fritz and Ben Shelton for the most among Americans this year. Korda’s improved serving and inside-in forehands turned the match after an early deficit, underscoring the field’s depth on a surface that rewards power and adaptability. Earlier, Tomas Martin Etcheverry rallied past American qualifier Mackenzie McDonald in a 6-7(5), 7-6(3), 6-3 battle that lasted two hours and 50 minutes, the Argentine saving his only break point in the decider while firing 19 aces, as ATP Stats noted, to advance with serve variations that kept returns at bay.
These gritty wins paint a buzzing draw where resilience and surface savvy drive progression, with Djokovic’s home-turf poise establishing a tone of psychological strength as the quarterfinals loom, promising clashes that test tactical evolution on the indoor hard courts.
