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World No. 1 Novak Djokovic will return to action at the 2023 Dubai Tennis Championships following his victorious Australian Open campaign, where he won a record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam title.
Djokovic opened his 2023 campaign with the title at the Adelaide International 1, where he injured his hamstring. Despite his injury-plagued build-up to the Australian Open, the Super Serb dropped just one set as he triumphed at Melbourne Park for a 10th time.
That took him level with Rafael Nadal (22) for most Grand Slam singles titles by a male player in the Open Era and a return to the World No. 1. Currently on a record-equalling 377th week at No. 1 - the most by any player. male or female - the Serb will claim the record outright on Monday (February 27) when the Dubai Tennis Championships starts.
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Ahead of his 13th campaign at the ATP 500 tournament, the five-time winner faces a relatively tough road to his third title of the season. On that note, here's a look at the projected opponents for the World No. 1 at the 2023 Dubai Tennis Championships:
Novak Djokovic's 1R opponent - Tomas Machac
Djokovic will open his campaign for a sixth Dubai title against qualifier Tomas Machac.
The World No. 120 is 1-2 in main draw matches this year and has never met the Serb before. Djokovic has never lost before the quarterfinals in 12 previous appearances at the ATP 500 tournament, and the trend is likely to continue.
Likely 2R opponent - Tallon Griekspoor
If the top seed doesn't stumble in the opening hurdle, he will meet either Tallon Griekspoor or Constant Lestienne for a place in the last eight. Both players are making their main draw debut in Dubai.
Griekspoor is one of the in-form players on tour this season, with the World No. 40 going 11-3, having won the Pune title earlier in the year. The Dutchman is coming off a third-set tiebreak loss to top seed Andrey Rublev in the Round of 16 of the Qatar Open.
Meanwhile, the 53rd-ranked Lestienne dropped to 5-4 on the year after losing in the opening round at the Qatar Open. That made it four straight main draw losses for the Frenchman, having also stumbled in the first round in Montpellier and Rotterdam after losing in the Australian Open second round. It's likely that Lestienne may not get past Griekspoor.
The World No. 1 is 1-0 against both players. He got the better of Lestienne in the Adelaide 1 International opening round earlier this year and beat Griekspoor in the 2021 US Open second round.
Likely QF opponent - Hubert Hurkacz
The World No. 1's first stern test of his title credentials is likely to come against fifth seed Hubert Hurkacz in the quarterfinals.
The World No. 11 is 9-4 on the season, winning three matches to reach the Montpellier final, where he faces Frenchman Benzamin Bonzi tonight (February 26).
Hurkacz made the semifinals with Poland at the inaugural United Cup last month before reaching the second week at the Australian Open. Having made a deep run in Montpellier, the 2022 Dubai semifinalist will open his campaign against Qatar Open finalist Andy Murray. He's slated to face Alexei Popyrin in the second round.
Djokovic, though, is unbeaten in four previous matchups with Hurkacz and is likely to come out trumps again if the matchup materializes.
Likely SF oppponent - Daniil Medvedev
If Djokovic gets past the last eight, he's likely to lock horns with third seed Daniil Medvedev.
The 27-year-old is in a rich vein of form, winning his last nine matches, including title runs at Montpellier and the Qatar Open. Medvedev is now 14-2 in 2023, outlasting Andy Murray in the final of the latter tournament. Earlier this season, the Russian made the semifinals at the Adelaide 1 International and the Australian Open third round.
Medvedev has enjoyed some great battles with Djokovic, who leads the Russian 9-4 in their H2H and has won the pair's last four meetings. The former World No. 1 notably beat Djokovic in the 2021 US Open final, which denied the Serb a rare calendar year Grand Slam.
The pair last met in the Adelaide 1 semifinals earlier this year, which Djokovic won in straight sets. Their likely semifinal meeting in Dubai could be a sterner affair, but the Serb should prevail.
Likely final opponent - Andrey Rublev
Defending champion Andrey Rublev is Djokovic's possible final opponent at the 2023 Dubai Open. The World No. 5 has had an underwhelming start to the year. He's 5-5 on the season after losing in the Qatar Open quarterfinals.
Rublev has won only one of his four previous matches with the World No. 1. That win came in the 2022 Belgrade final on clay, with the Serb winning the pair's all three hardcourt meetings.
The World No. 1 is once again expected to come out victorious if he meets Rublev in the title match.
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