Dino Prižmić, the 20-year-old Croatian tennis player, continues to impress at the Rome Masters, part of the prestigious ATP Masters 1000 series. After making it through the qualifying rounds, he defeated Márton Fucsovics, currently ranked 57th in the world, in the first round. In the second round, he will face Novak Djokovic.
The match against Fucsovics was completed today, with Prižmić winning 6-4, 6-3 after one hour and 49 minutes of play. This was Prižmić's first encounter with a former Wimbledon quarterfinalist, as the 79th-ranked Croatian faced the 11-year-older Fucsovics. The final can be watched here. He now faces a much tougher challenge.
Djokovic has beaten him once before
In the continuation of the tournament, Prižmić will face Novak Djokovic, the three-time Grand Slam champion and, for many, the greatest tennis player of all time. This will be their second meeting, with Prižmić seeking his first win. In their only previous encounter, at the 2024 Australian Open, Prižmić won the first set but ultimately lost 2-6, 7-6(5), 6-3, 6-4. Djokovic has won the Rome Masters six times.
Prižmić has been in excellent form recently, reaching the third round of the Madrid Open. The young player, who will turn 21 in August, first defeated Italian Matteo Berrettini and then achieved his first win against a Top 10 player, defeating the sixth-ranked American Ben Shelton. This win moved him up nine spots in the rankings.
