Aleksej Popirin emerges as a rival to Đoković

Aleksej Popirin, a 43rd-ranked Australian tennis player, will be facing Novak Djokovic in the next round of the tournament. Popirin easily defeated his compatriot Polmans (3:0) in the first round. This means that the majority of the stadium will likely be against Djokovic, although he has faced this situation before. Popirin, a tall player at the age of 24, has only played against Djokovic once before at the Tokyo 2019 tournament where he was easily defeated (6:4, 6:2). If Djokovic wins this match, it is still unclear who his next opponent will be as three matches need to be completed. The potential rivals include Hanfman, Monfis, Murray, and Echeveri. Regardless of the outcome, Djokovic will be facing a tough opponent, especially if it is Andy Murray.