Djokovic needs more quick matches

Novak Djokovic was grinning ear to ear after his 6-0, 6-2, 7-6 (5) first-round victory over the powerful German, Benjamin Becker, in the first round of the Australian Open.

Anna Chakvetadze never cracked a smile after her first-round gift.
Like his countrywoman, Jelena Jankovic, the Serbian Djokovic rarely sees a playing opportunity he doesn't like, which is why last year, he played 86 contests, the most of anyone in the top 10. Moreover he played numerous long, grueling matches, including a four-hour victory over Oliver Pacience at the French Open, where he reached the semis; four and five-hour wins at Wimbledon over Lleyton Hewitt and Marcos Baghdatis, where he also reached the semis; and a four-hour-and-40-minute win over Radek Stepanek at the US Open, where he reached the final before going down to Roger Federer. After falling flat on his back at the year-end Tennis Masters Cup, he took a much-needed break, laughingly saying that he did nothing at all.
"Well, I tried not to do anything," he said. "That's a real rest. That was necessary for me after such a long season. I needed really to take it easy. I was aware of the fact that I'm gonna start my preparation period a little bit later. Physically I'm ready, and mentally as well. I have a lot of motivation to do well this season, especially here in the Australian Open."
If Djokovic is to go far in Melbourne, he has to cut down on the amount of time spent on court, which means he's has to play a little more aggressively and take care of every opportunity. He's the favorite in his quarter, but Federer will more than likely be his semifinal-round foe and he'll have no chance in that contest if he goes in with dead legs.
"I am aware that I could go more to the net, maybe I could improve a little bit more my serve because I'm pretty tall," he said. "So I have a lot of potential in these things. I've been working on them recently, a lot. But it cannot come over the night. I am trying to use my opportunities during the match because I know that I'm a really good groundstroke player, powerful shots. I'm always trying to be aggressive. A lot of times in the match it happens that I can finish off the point in a shorter time."
Djokovic is thrilled that he's managed to reach No. 3 in the world and to be mentioned as one of the few players with shot at unseating the great Federer, but he's smart enough to know that with those accolades comes increased expectations. But he feels that he can handle it and accepts it as a part of his long climb to the top.
"It's natural that you feel the pressure," he said. "If you don't feel pressure something is wrong with you, but it's a matter of how you deal with the pressure. I'm trying not to think about that too much, about the expectations, about the people saying, 'You got enough quality to win a Grand Slam this year, especially in Australia or US Open, because of the hard courts.' It's very flattering when people, talk about me in the positive way, but, it kind of puts a lot of pressure. I'm only 20-years-old, so hopefully, you know, I'm going to have another 10 or 15 years of the professional tennis. I'm going to take it easy and try to focus myself on what I do."
Anna Chakvetadze is playing through many emotions. ( / Associated Press)
Djokovic has good reason to be joyful, as with Rafael Nadal, he's considered the prime contender to top-ranked Federer. Sixth-seed Chakvetadze has better reason to be glum, but because from the looks of her long and tried face while reflecting on her family's mugging at the hands of a group of robbers in the their Moscow home last December, she's a long way away from a full emotional recovery.
"Because I'm not at home, I'm trying to think about tennis and trying to forget it because if I think about it more I wouldn't be mentally ready to play," said Chakvetadze after she advanced to the second round when her opponent, Andrea Petkovic, retired with a right knee injury in the first game of their contest. "I feel better now. I'm OK and I'm trying not to think about what happened with me and my family."
What happened was that five-to-six unknown people wearing masks burst into their suburban Moscow home, tied up the Chakvetadze family, robbed them of some $250,000 worth of valuables and cash, and left Anna with a left finger injury and her father Djambuli bruised and beaten. Her mother, Natalia, and her 9-year-old brother, Roman, weren't harmed
"It was [a] good thing we were all together because my father and I just came back from an exhibition that morning, otherwise my mother and little brother would have been at home alone and it could have been worse," Chakvetadze, who couldn't practice for a week because her hand was too sore to grip the racket when she tried to hit backhands.
Four of the thieves were caught a couple of weeks later, but not until after the Chavetadze's had to hire around-the-clock security and install a new alarm system. Anna says they are considering moving out of crime-ridden Moscow to somewhere else in Russia.
"You can't control these things," Chakvetadze said. "It can happen to everyone. But it happened to me and before I felt safe in my house and I found out I wasn't."
The 20-year-old Chakvetadze entered last year's Australian Open without such a high ranking, but as an attractive darkhorse, as she had a standout end to 2006. Had the robbery not have occurred, she may have been an obvious semifinal pick, because December should have afforded her an opportunity to right her ship and gets the kinks out of her game after a less than mediocre fall season.
But she's lacking play and isn't speaking with much conviction. Like many of the multitude of Russian players, Chakvetadze sports a tough exterior. She didn't grow wealthy, or have gobs of money thrown at her at some well-branded U.S. academy, and had to work extremely hard under trying circumstances to earn her place in the game.
But while it's possible that she could harden her shell and turn things around during the first week of the tournament, but she wasn't too convincing, saying she was lacking confidence.
"I didn't really have any preparation for the season," she said. "I need matches."