Danish teenager defeats Novak Djokovic to announce himself on the world stage
Danish teenager Borna Coric, 22, defeated Novak Djokovic in another epic battle in the World Group on Day 2, taking two sets to one and claiming his first career victory against the world number one player.
Djokovic led 2-1 in the third set and was 2-1 up in the final set when Coric came back from a set down and won the title.
He said: ‘That’s fantastic news. It’s been over four years that I have seen Novak winning this tournament and I have to say, he had a great match today.
‘To win one big match against him, that is really incredible. I’m so happy and so grateful for this victory. To be able to play my first match against him, especially having the opportunity that we had today, made this victory even more special.
‘Today being my first match against him, I made no adjustments in my game at all. I’m so happy right now, to have finally made my first victory against him. This is something that I had expected to happen. Now I have a clear title in my hands and today was a big step in the right direction.’
Coric had been waiting a long time to taste victory on home soil, but having reached the final here meant more for the 23-year-old than just the bragging rights.
He played so well against Djokovic that he was given an interview and told about how proud he was of beating his world number one and he told the Danish fan, who gave him his match ball, to also wear it in his next match to impress everyone.
This is definitely the first time he has been so pleased with his performance in a major so far in his own country.
Coral beat Doha finalist Djokovic in his last match in 2016 in the Wimbledon final, but then lost in the final of the French Open the following month when he was beaten by the
