Top seed Novak Djokovic shook off any concerns over his right shoulder. The Serb, who retired in his previous match in the Cincinnati final to Andy Murray, said his shoulder felt fine.

“The shoulder in Cincinnati didn’t feel good obviously, and throughout the whole week I was carrying the, you know, kind of pain and discomfort in my shoulder,” Djokovic said. “But after Cincinnati I took some time off, and I did everything in order to recover the shoulder. Today I didn’t feel any pain. I served well and I played well, so I have no concern.”

Djokovic is playing his first Grand Slam as a No. 1 ranked player. Yesterday, in his 60th match of the season Djokovic had a light workout with a 44-minute retirement win over Conor Niland of Ireland.

Djokovic will play Argentina Carlos Berlocq in the second round on Thursday.

A few players have suggested that the court speed at the US Open has been slowed, but Djokovic, a two-time finalist in New York, said he didn’t notice much difference.

“There is difference I think in the night sessions and matches during the day,” Djokovic said. “During the day the ball travels through the air faster than in the night. So maybe that’s why it was a bit slower. I don’t know. I didn’t spend that much time on the center court, but I still I don’t feel any big difference from last year. I think it’s more or less the same surface.”

Filed under: US Open
Tags: Novak Djokovic