By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Monday 13 January 2025
Despite falling short of a win on Monday night in Melbourne, 19-year-old American Nishesh Basavareddy made a major impression on the big stage as he battled 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic in a hard-fought four sets at Rod Laver. Arena.
Djokovic himself, who was outplayed by the former Stanford teammate for the first set and a half, came up with an excellent summary of what he saw from the Southern California native.
“I was very impressed by him,” said the 37-year-old Serbian after scoring a 4-6 6-3 6-4 6-2 triumph. “I think the whole stadium was really. That is why he received a huge applause and appreciation from the crowd. They saw what he did on the court, the quality of tennis he played, the fighting spirit.”
Many are comparing Basavareddy’s playing style to that of Djokovic, due to the fact that the American has a very balanced game and excels at changing the direction of rallies and producing penetrating depth on his groundstrokes.
(The following is a commentary on playing style and technique, not a prediction of future results)Nishesh Basavareddy does the best Djokovic impression I’ve ever seen. Not close.
— Gill Gross 🍍 (@Gill_Gross) January 13, 2025
He also displayed extreme poise and mental toughness, not unlike Djokovic. After the stalemate at the end of the second set, Basavareddy kept his wits about him, saw his trainer and loaded up on fluids so he could try to continue the battle. He didn’t get the win, but he certainly earned a lot of respect for his effort.
Naomi Osaka, who was scheduled to play after the Djokovic-Basavareddy match, has also received attention.
Novak Djokovic reacts to Nishesh Basavareddy having his picture as his WhatsApp profile picture after their match in #AO2025 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/86XVo8By4b
— FirstSportz Tennis (@FS_Tennis1) January 13, 2025
“I was really impressed by (Basavareddy), the kid who played Djokovic,” she said. “I thought it was very interesting how focused he was. Even though it was tight, he was still determined to play the game.”
Djokovic says we can expect big things from the current World No.107.
“Big credit to him for coming out on his Grand Slam debut, first time on a big court, playing the way he did,” he said. “Very well done. I’m sure if he continues, like I said on the pitch, like this, he’s very young, we’ll see a lot of him in the future. He has really great hands. Overall, a pretty complete player. Of course, he can always improve his shots. He already has a really good game.”
