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AUSTRALIAN OPEN

January 18, 2016

Novak Djokovic

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

N. DJOKOVIC/H. Chung

6-3, 6-2, 6-4

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. He's not an easy first round. Can you talk about how the match went for you.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, never played him before. Never practiced with him before. So work had to be done to analyze the opponent and get information from the other players and all the available videos of his past matches.

I've prepared myself as best as I could.

But, again, having to play somebody for the first time, especially somebody that is as young as him, he's only 19, you know, it can be tricky. Obviously getting out on the court and playing against a player that has nothing to lose.

His baseline game is very good, very solid, especially from the backhand side. Very flat, strong backhand, solid shots, both angles. Once he gets into the good rhythm, he can serve well.

He's a pretty tall guy. For somebody of his height, he moves very well, as well. He can play equally well from defense to offense. And he's one of the players that people are talking about as a potential top player in the future.

He's got that potential, no question about it. As I said on the court, he needs experience, he needs more time.

Q. What were your sensations on the court today, your game?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: A nice opening match with real Australian summer conditions. It was pretty warm. But, again, it was warm for both of us. For this kind of conditions, you have to prepare yourself, expect the warm days like this and accept them, as well.

You try to stay composed, not get carried away by heat, get distracted. Of course, there were some long rallies, long exchanges that got both of us a little bit short on air. But I think physically I was really good on the court. I managed to play the best tennis when I needed to.

I think serve is something that I take out from today's match as the best part of my game. Got me a lot of free points, you know, a lot of winners and aces from that shot. Of course, in days like this, you need to serve well.

Q. We all turned up today to see the reports of the allegations of match fixing in tennis. What is your take on it? None of these players have been identified. Do you feel bad that it casts a shadow over everybody?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I don't think so. Honestly I've heard about the story and I read that there were a couple of players mentioned who are not active anymore, talking about the matches that have happened almost 10 years ago.

Of course, there is no room for any match fixing or corruption in our sport. We're trying to keep it as clean as possible. We have, I think, a sport evolved and upgraded our programs and authorities to deal with these particular cases.

I don't think the shadow is cast over our sport. In contrary, people are talking about names, guessing who these players are, guessing those names. But there's no real proof or evidence yet of any active players, for that matter. As long as it's like that, it's just speculation. So I think we have to keep it that way.

Q. In 2007 you were quoted as saying you'd been offered $200,000 to throw a first-round match in St. Petersburg. I believe you didn't actually even play in the tournament. Can you clarify that and tell us what happened.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I was not approached directly. I was approached -- well, me personally. I was approached through people that were working with me at that time, that were with my team. Of course, we threw it away right away. It didn't even get to me, the guy that was trying to talk to me, he didn't even get to me directly. There was nothing out of it.

Unfortunately there were some, in those times, those days, rumors, some talks, some people were going around. They were dealt with. In the last six, seven years, I haven't heard anything similar.

I personally was never approached directly, so I have nothing more to say about that.

Q. As a young player on your way up, how did that make you feel, even be indirectly associated with it?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It made me feel terrible because I don't want to be anyhow linked to this kind of -- you know, somebody may call it an opportunity. For me, that's an act of unsportsmanship, a crime in sport honestly. I don't support it. I think there is no room for it in any sport, especially in tennis.

But, you know, I always have been taught and have been surrounded with people that had nurtured and, you know, respected the sport's values. That's the way I've grown up. Fortunately for me, I didn't need to, you know, get directly involved in these particular situations.

Q. (Question regarding attending Zupska Berba wine festival with friend Ilija Bozoljac.)
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: I'm not so sure. Yeah, Ilija is a good friend of mine. I grew up with him. I drink more water than wine, I must say. So although I like to enjoy every once in a while a glass of wine, not more than that.

I'm sure it's a great festival. For now I don't really have time. But I do enjoy my life. I don't know if you question that. But I assure you that I enjoy my life.

Q. You're someone who takes your role as an ambassador for the sport really seriously. You care about the message you put out there. Does it make you uncomfortable at all that this Grand Slam has a betting company as one of its big sponsors? There's so many ads, even on Twitter.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, this is a subject for discussion, I think, today and in the future. It's a fine line. Honestly it's on a borderline, I would say. Whether you want to, you know, have betting companies involved in the big tournaments in our sport or not, you know, it's hard to say what's right and what's wrong.

One of the reasons why tennis is a popular and clean sport is because it has always valued its integrity. Protecting that integrity was one of the highest priorities of each and every leadership that was part of the association. I think especially in the Grand Slams that are and always have been the most valued and respected and known tennis tournaments around the world throughout the history of this sport.

You know, I know that there is also many betting companies that on the websites are using the names, the brands, images of tournaments and players and matches in order to profit from that. Tennis hasn't been really getting the piece of that cake, if you know what I mean.

It's hard to say. I don't have yet the stand and clear opinion about that. I think it is a subject of discussion. We'll see what happens.

Q. We've known you for a long time. You always tell it like it is. But how can tennis go to some 137th ranked player who has been struggling on the circuit and tell him don't double-fault, don't throw a point here or there, when the top officials themselves go to a betting company and take that money and send an obvious mixed message to everyone?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Well, it's the first time that I hear something like that. Obviously I can't speak about that from this position where I don't have the support of the facts and information and evidence, you know. Obviously you hear some stories here and there.

From my knowledge and information about, you know, the match fixing or anything similar, there is nothing happening on the top level, as far as I know. Challenger level, those tournaments, maybe, maybe not. But, you know, I'm not entitled to really talk about it. I can give my opinion. But there is an organization, authorities, people who take care of that on a daily basis and make sure to track it down.

It's always a choice for a tennis player, an athlete or any person in life. You know, even though it seems that you don't, but you always have a choice, especially for somebody who is on the tennis court, whether or not you're going to accept something that is going against everything that the sport stands for.

I would always make the right choice. But I can only speak on my own behalf.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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