Djokovic keeps crowd at bay in defeat of Dimitrov

Novak Djokovic wiggled through a mid-match tight spot on the way to a 6-3, 4-6 6-1 defeat of Grigor Dimitrov to book a place in the fourth round of the Rome Masters on Sunday.

The six-time champion here who is defending the title posted his 11th victory in a dozen matches against longtime opponent Dimitrov, advancing in just under two and a half hours.

Victory marked his 1,050th career win on the Tour.

Djokovic admitted that a minor swoon in the second set opened the door for the crowd to get behind his opponent, with his own poor form resulting in a deciding third set.

While leading a set and 4-2, Djokovic let slip and found himself struggling against fans who shifted most support to his opponent.

“I think I could have won in straight sets,” the Serb said.

“I was a set and 4-2 up and had a pretty decent forehand in the middle of the court at deuce on his serve and missed that. He held his serve well, we had new balls the next game, 

“I did a double fault, the crowd got into it and got behind him and of course the energy of the place and the tone of the match changed.

“I dropped my level a bit, but luckily I managed to find it right away in the first game [of the third set], made that crucial break and kind of shifted the momentum to my side.

“I’m really pleased with the way I closed out the match.”

Djokovic won for the 66th time in Rome, with Rafael Nadal leading that category with 69 victories here.

In the last eight he will be aiming to the quarter-finals for the 17th time in as many Rome appearances.

Main photo:- Novak Djokovic winning in Rome today by Corinne Dubreuil/ATPTour.com