Australian Open live: Novak Djokovic vs. Lucas Pouille in the Betway Match of the Day
Lucas Pouille calls Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open 2019 in the Betway Match of the Day tournament favorite. The match live and in stream at ServusTV and servus.com (Austria), at Eurosport and in our live ticker.
by Jens Huiber
last edit: Jan 25, 2019, 09:43 am
Rafael Nadal's answers after his smooth semi-final victory were a little too diplomatic even for John McEnroe. When asked about the second round of the semifinals at the 2019 Australian Open, Nadal basically left no doubt that he expected Novak Djokovic to be the final opponent. Only the Spaniard said so in such a way that McEnroe suggested a career in politics.
But of course Rafael Nadal is a polite person, he gave Pouille outsider chances. After all: Pouille does not see the balance between the French and Novak Djokovic at a disadvantage. The first meeting of the two will take place on Friday at 9:30 a.m.CET. Surprisingly for two specialists who have been on the ATP tour for so long.
Djokovic not challenged in the quarterfinals
However, the favorite will be Novak Djokovic - not only because of his outstanding performances since the Wimbledon tournament in 2018, but also because of the much less effort that the world's number one has had to deal with so far. In particular, the quarterfinals against Kei Nishikori came to short-time work, the Japanese could not even finish two sets.
Pouille, on the other hand, was challenged several times, even in round two against Maximilian Marterer. The lecture against Milos Raonic in the latest match was impressive, but Djokovic will make the rallies longer against Pouille, who will bring the 31st place in the world to its physical performance limit.
So there is a lot to do for the medical department around Lucas Pouille. But also for Amélie Mauresmo. She has to come up with a match plan again, with which her protege surprises the next favorite after Raonic and previously Borna Coric.