Serve and surge: Novak Djokovic storms into record US Open quarterfinals

Novak Djokovic has been carrying a niggle at the US Open, but the 38-year-old found a way past in-form Jan-Lennard Struff to march into the quarter-finals. With another sensational serving display, Djokovic became the oldest man to reach the last eight at all four Grand Slams in a single season.

The Serb brushed aside Struff 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 in just an hour and 49 minutes, producing a near-flawless performance against the German, who had arrived with momentum after ousting higher-ranked Holger Rune and Frances Tiafoe in earlier rounds.

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Djokovic twice called for the physio between sets to attend to neck and shoulder issues, yet the discomfort never truly troubled him. Out-serving one of the biggest hitters on tour, he fired 12 aces — double Struff’s tally — and won close to 80 per cent of points behind his first serve. That dominance denied Struff the freedom to attack as he had against Rune or Tiafoe.

“It definitely helps if you serve well. I think I had a great serving performance in the last round and also tonight,” Djokovic said after sealing his 14th US Open quarter-final.

“I just saw the stats — I out-served one of the guys who had the most aces during the tournament this year, so that’s a great stat. Obviously that helps make my life easier on the court. Maybe I don’t need to work as hard or unnecessarily more than I have to.”

Djokovic had already shown serving authority in the third round against Cameron Norrie. After dropping the second set, he raised his level and outclassed the Briton, winning 86 per cent of first-serve points. With age no longer on his side, Djokovic appears to be leaning on his serve to shorten his workload in the early rounds.

Asked whether he was enjoying the night sessions, Djokovic hinted at the twilight of his New York campaigns.

“I don’t know how many more I’m going to have, so obviously each one is very special and I want to thank all you guys for being present,” he told the crowd.

Meanwhile, Djokovic moved past Roger Federer and Andre Agassi on the list of most US Open quarter-final appearances in the Open Era. Only Jimmy Connors, with 17, now stands ahead of him.

Having required four sets in both the second and third rounds, Djokovic made sure Struff offered no such resistance, sweeping through in straights to conserve energy before what shapes as his first major test of the fortnight: a quarter-final against fourth seed Taylor Fritz.

Djokovic boasts a 10-0 head-to-head record against Fritz, who has been in impressive form during the American hard-court swing. The world No 4 reached the Toronto Masters semi-finals last month and has grown into the tournament, backing up four-set wins in rounds two and three by crushing Tomas Machac in straight sets in the fourth round on Sunday.