Berrettini after his victory over Djokovic: "I felt that all the hard work I've put in over the last few months had finally paid off".

On Tuesday, Matteo Berrettini defeated Novak Djokovic in the first round of the Doha tournament.

Back from a hamstring injury, the Serb produced a good first set but came up against a very good Berrettini, who defeated Djokovic for the first time in five meetings (7-6, 6-2). The Italian expressed his satisfaction after the match.

"It's incredible to have beaten him, it was definitely a goal I'd had in mind for a long time. We'd already faced each other in some of the most important tournaments on the circuit and it's an honor to beat him in one of these events.

The truth is, I've worked hard to get back on the circuit, to recover and be at this level again. I know my level can be very high, but I need to play a lot of matches like today's to be at my best.

Today, I felt that all the hard work I've put in over the last few months had finally paid off. Everything worked on the court.

I'm very happy with my performance and, above all, I enjoyed playing this match. It's an important signal. Djokovic's first match point?

You never know what can happen in a match like this, especially in the final moments. We're talking about one of the greatest champions this sport has ever had, and that's Novak Djokovic.

He's a great fighter, a tennis player who's always ready to turn things around. The only thing I could do at that moment was concentrate on every point and keep playing," he assured World Tennis Italia.