Novak Djokovic's Australian Open 1R opponent Nishesh Basavareddy reveals his first reaction to drawing the Serb

Nishesh Basavareddy will face his career’s biggest challenge when he takes on Novak Djokovic in the opening round of the Australian Open 2025.

In a conversation with the media, ahead of the Australian Open 2025 on Saturday, Basavareddy spoke about his initial reaction when he found out he was playing Djokovic - the 10-time champion - in the first round.

"I was still playing in Auckland, so I wasn't planning on knowing the draw until after the tournament, but my brother told me, ‘You're going to see it all over social media anyway’. He told me I was playing Novak. And yeah, my initial reaction was just, I was really happy, really excited. It's a great draw I think, to play something like that on one of the biggest courts in the world," he said.

Basavareddy is no stranger to Djokovic as the American teenager was the Serbian’s hitting partner at the ATP Finals two years ago. Basavareddy said he had a chance to watch Djokovic play in Brisbane last week but did not hit with him. The Serbian had recently said that he expects Nishesh Basavareddy to make a statement against him.

Basavareddy, making his Grand Slam debut in Melbourne, comes into the year’s first Grand Slam after a superb run at the ASB Classic in Auckland. The 19-year-old fought his way into the semifinals, where he lost to eventual champion Gael Monfils.

The American teenager, who also featured at the 2024 ATP NextGen Finals, has made rapid strides over the last few months. Addressing his sudden rise through the ranks, Basavareddy said:

“I think the last couple of months have been a really fast rise for me from playing all the Challengers in the (United) States to playing a couple of Tour events over the last couple of weeks and (now) my first Grand Slam main draw. So everything's sort of sped up recently.”

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Nishesh Basavareddy to play against his idol at Australian Open 2025

January 13 will be a special day for Nishesh Basavareddy as he will take on his childhood idol Djokovic. Basavareddy had told the Changeover Podcast last year that he grew up watching the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

"Yeah, when I was younger I used to try to like copy his serve and stuff. Maybe when I was younger serve wasn’t as good so that wasn’t the best thing," Basavareddy said, before adding, "But yeah he’s (Novak Djokovic) been my favorite player since I was growing up, so."

2025 ASB Classic - Day 12 - Source: Getty

Basavareddy added that he was inspired by Djokovic’s style of play and tried to model his game based on the Serb.

"I was never going to be the guy that’s going to overpower someone or serve big. So I think learning from a guy like him who uses all parts of the court as an all-around player; uses the pace of the other guy to redirect, those have all been things that I’ve worked on since I was young. So I think it just developed over time."

Nishesh Basavareddy will hope to make a splash on his Australian Open 2025 debut and perhaps pull off one of the biggest upsets in the history of the Melbourne major.