Novak Djokovic raised a single finger to the heavens, a devilish grin breaking across his features.
He had just steered a sliding, one-handed backhand around the net post and on to the line, an audacious winner that left his opponent, Roberto Carballés Baena, grinning ruefully.
It is a tennis truism that no shot, however good, is worth more than one point, and yet it felt like a significant moment. After a turbulent season in which he has failed to reach a final and upended his support team, the Serbian world No 1 arrived in Paris admitting that he felt “a bit embarrassed” to articulate his ambitions. Now, here he was, gesturing to the crowd, demanding their acclaim, once more the strutting alpha male of the men’s locker’s room.
It is too soon to say normal service has been resumed, but the 24-time grand slam champion can certainly draw encouragement from the commanding nature of his 6-4, 6-1, 6-2 win over Carballés Baena, even if the 31-year-old’s Spaniard’s solid baseline game offered a more straightforward challenge than he faced against the net-rushing Pierre-Hugues Herbert on Tuesday night. As he locked down his game from the baseline, served with trademark authority and conjured some sumptuous drop shots, Djokovic gave the impression of a man sharpening his tools for bigger battles to come.
“There’s always that conviction and belief inside of me that I can win a slam,” said Djokovic, the defending champion, who at the age of 37 is chasing a fourth French Open crown.
“That’s the reason why I’m still competing at this level, that’s why I’m here at this age. I wouldn’t be really competing at the slams and continuing to play professional tennis if I didn’t believe that I possess quality to go all the way to the title match.
“I still sense that I have the game and I have the goods to go far. But as I said in the press conference prior to the start of the tournament, I don’t want to get too much ahead of the present day, because I haven’t had great form [in the] lead-up to Roland Garros, so I have to keep my expectations a bit lower.
“Of course, hopes and beliefs and convictions are always there, always high, and I always aim for the highest stars, so to say. But I’m being very conscious of the present moment and what needs to be done on a daily basis to build my form as the tournament progresses, hopefully, and then peak at the right time, when it matters the most.”
Carballés Baena, the world No 63, enjoyed his best moments in the opening set, where the quality of his backhand, and in particular his ability to redirect the ball down the line, caught Djokovic cold on more than one occasion. But having recovered an early break with a combination of good returning and a pair of stellar drop shots, the Serb began to establish a metronomic rhythm from the baseline.
It undoubtedly helped that he was facing a prototypical Spanish clay-courter who was rarely able to rush or discomfit him as the big-serving Herbert had done. Yet the manner in which Djokovic elevated his level as Carballés Baena served to stay in the opening set was no less impressive for that, the Serb drilling an unanswerable backhand winner, working the angles to win a 16-shot rally, and remaining rock solid in between.
Having created the platform for a convincing win, the only blight on Djokovic’s afternoon was a run-in with a front-row spectator who distracted him as he chased down a drop shot late in the first set. The offender was warned by Nico Helwerth, the German chair umpire, and received a withering look from Djokovic as he went on to break.
The incident followed Iga Swiatek’s impassioned appeal to the crowd not to call out during points following her epic second-round win over Naomi Osaka on Wednesday night, and David Goffin’s complaint that an unruly spectator spat chewing gum at him during his victory over Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France. Djokovic expressed support for the Belgian’s decision to speak out over about the behaviour of the partisan crowd, whom he accused of “total disrespect”.
“I saw a little bit of the highlights [from] Goffin’s match,” said Djokovic. They can be even more loud and inappropriate at times. It’s part of what we do, it’s part of sports.
“When [a] line is passed and it starts becoming disrespectful towards the player, in those instances I understand that a player like Goffin the other day reacted, because I’ve experienced quite a few times those particular situations. I support a player standing up against people who are disrespecting and heckling him. It’s not always possible to tolerate.”
Earlier in the day, the tournament director, Amélie Mauresmo, responded to the concerns raised by players by announcing a ban on alcohol in the stands. “Alcohol was allowed until now in the stands,” said Mauresmo. “Not in all the stands. That’s over.”
Elsewhere, Alexander Zverev followed up his opening-round win over Rafael Nadal with a 7-6 (7-4), 6-2, 6-2 win over Goffin. The German fourth seed will face Tallon Griekspoor of the Netherlands next. Daniil Medvedev, seeded fifth, advanced to the third round after Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia retired due to illness while trailing 6-1, 5-0.