The second round of the Rio Open 2024 has an all-Serbian encounter on the cards. The Laslo Djere vs Dusan Lajovic match is attracting a lot of interest, especially from passionate Serbian tennis fans. The duo have met on four occasions in the past with Djere winning three of them, leading 3-1 on head-to-head.
Another sub-plot to the match is that both Djere and Lajovic have been backed and in a way, mentored by Novak Djokovic in the past. The World No.1 has played a vital role in developing these two talented Serbian players as they aim to reach the top of the game. Both Djere and Lajovic consider Djokovic to be their idol naturally and look to follow in his footsteps. Now, the Serbian hopefuls will look to take a step forward in the Laslo Djere vs Dusan Lajovic clash.
Both the players are yet to get a headline victory in their careers so far. In the first round of the Rio Open 2024, Dusan Lajovic needed three sets to get past an inspired Daniel Galan. Despite losing the first set, Lajovic came back to win the next two sets to book a place in the second round. However, his Serbian counterpart had no such hiccups as he dominated in a straight sets victory against Bernabe Miralles.
This match has the potential to be a blockbuster event. However, Laslo Djere will start the match as a slight favorite due to his higher ranking. The SportsRush predicts Laslo Djere to win the match in three sets. According to Pokerstars, Djere has his odds set at 1.57, compared to Lajovic’s 2.25.
The match will be played on Wednesday, 21st February at 9.30 pm local time (7.30 PM ET). The temperature is expected to be around 23 degrees Celsius and the match will be streamed live on Tennis Channel in US.
