Novak Djokovic may have peaked too early at Australian Open 2023, states Mark Petchey; says very few players can compete like the Serbian

Mark Petchey is confident in Novak Djokovic's abilities despite there being fears of him pulling out of the 2023 Australian Open following a hamstring injury he suffered at Adelaide International 1 recently.

While speaking on Stan Sport's Grand Slam Daily, Petchey, a former tennis pro turned analyst and sports commentator, was hopeful of the Serbian's performance at the ongoing Melbourne Major, who began his campaign with a 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 win over Spaniard Roberto Carballés Baena.

Petchey was all praise for Djokovic and said:

"There are very few players that compete like Novak, and I thought he maybe peaked too early in the tournament, but boy was it a joy to watch."

He added:

"There's definitely some concern there. You won't not have a practice, which is what happened two days prior to this, if there isn't a concern."

That said, the former World No. 1's injury troubles do not seem to be completely behind him as Petchey noticed some discomfort during his opening-round match.

"There were a couple of times in the match, to be honest, that he kind of stretched for a ball or a couple of drop shots where he kind of shook his leg out afterwards," he said.

"You're going to go through your routine, you're going to make sure everything is normal. So the reality is, there definitely is an issue with Novak's hamstring, but it's clearly not something that he can't manage at the moment."

"Will it be around when the tougher tests come? Probably not, and that's probably what I'm sure he's hoping for. For the time being, everything looked pretty good out there," he concluded.

Petchey stated his confidence in the 21-time Grand Slam champion's form. He said:

"He's got form here in the past where he hasn't felt perfect and he's still come away with the silverware. I'm not going to count him out."

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Mark Petchey believes Australian crowd has forgiven Novak Djokovic for 2022 visa controversy

Novak Djokovic celebrates his 2023 Australian Open 1R win against Roberto Carballes Baena.

Novak Djokovic came under scrutiny for his vaccination stance and status last year. He missed the 2022 Australian Open as he was deported from Down Under.

While there have been concerns about how the Australian crowd would receive the Serbian on his return, Mark Petchey believes that the sour memories of last year are a thing of the past.

"There was no question about that, what happened 12 months ago has definitely been forgiven. They're super happy to see him back," he said.