Tokyo: Novak Djokovic stepped up a gear at the Japan Open Wednesday, fending off a tough challenge from Japanese wild card Go Soeda 6-3, 7-5 to advance to the quarter-final.
The world number one said he had no problems with the injured shoulder which forced him out of the US Open as he looked to face either French fifth-seed Lucas Pouille or Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka at the Ariake Colosseum, a venue for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Djokovic was cruising to a victory until late in the second set when the 35-year-old Japanese player put on a tenacious fight while the Serb began missing many of his first serves, reducing his lead to 5-4 before Soeda made it 5-5.
But Djokovic snapped back in form and took the final two games without giving a single point to the Japanese, ending the match in just over 90 minutes.
"Obviously, I was pleased to get that done in two (sets)," Djokovic said. "We must give credit to Go Soeda, who played a really good match, fought hard, made me work for my win today.
"For my side, I am really pleased. Probably I played even on a higher level than the first round. So the game is going to the right direction for sure," he said.
"I played now three days in a row," he said. "Everything is fine."
