French tennis star Corentin Moutet got off to a winning start at the 2024 Italian Open. He has won his previous three matches in Rome. And now he needs to pull up his socks before he steps onto the court on Friday, May 10 in the battle of the wits and the spirit! Can he make his presence felt against Novak Djokovic in the second round (R64) of the tournament? “I love playing this kind of match!“ – Moutet opined with his inimitable grace.

For Novak Djokovic, the Italian Open is an opportunity to not only grab his first title of the season but also an opportunity to clinch his 1100th career win. He was last seen in action at the Monte Carlo Masters in April. How does his opponent look into this epic contest? “Ever since I was little. I’ve been training for this,“ Corentin Moutet in the post-match press conference. He recalled his previous meetings with Nadal and Djokovic and then went on to add, “They’re more towards the end of his career. It’s a chance to meet them. I would have liked to play against (Roger) Federer too.“

On facing Novak Djokovic, he believes this is one of the biggest matches of his career and he wants to give his best! “Against Djokovic, I will go on the court to win, like every time, even if I’m not the favorite.“ He believes this is a way of respecting one’s opponent. Corentin Moutet called Novak Djokovic, “One of the best players in the world, if not the best.” 

Novak Djokovic had plenty of time to rest and train ahead of this contest and will be keen to step onto the court. They have previously met only once in their careers. And the Serbian currently leads the H2H scoreline with a 1-0 margin. Here’s what they had to say about their second meeting on the Tour.

Corentin Moutet is “super excited” to face Novak Djokovic yet again in his career, but what is his lethal weapon?

The 25-year-old French tennis player is currently ranked at 83 in the men’s singles ranking. His win-loss record for this season has been 5-6. But when it comes to confidence, well, there’s plenty in store for this promising Frenchman. He defeated Roman Safiullin in his previous match by a three-set thriller and then spoke about the ways he’d love to counter the ‘Serbinator’ in his next match. “I’m going to try to play my game, hurt him with my forehand. There is often a solution in matches to win them,” Moutet added.

The six-time champion in Rome looks comparatively relaxed at the moment. The only thing that has been concerning him at the moment is gaining the right proportion of moment ahead of the mega clay court event which is going to be held later this month. Novak Djokovic said, “I’m on a good route to peak at Roland Garros in Paris. Hopefully, here in Rome, I can play better than I did in Monte Carlo. The wish, obviously, is always to go far, but let’s see.” Share  your thoughts on this faceoff between the world number one versus number eighty-three.