The Netherlands’ Botic van de Zandschulp has shown in the past that he has the skills and the game to beat the best players on the tour. The Dutchman will take on Novak Djokovic in the third round of the Australian Open.
Zandschulp is confident ahead of the big clash against the Serbian and said he has the game to go past the 10-time Australian Open champion. While, Zandschulp won his opening round match against Brandon Nakashima in four sets, he registered a straight set win against J.C. Shang in the second round.
“It’s always nice to play one of the best of the game. It’s a nice matchup as well, I know I can play well during them and I’ve proved it in the past,” Van de Zandschulp told ATPTour.com in Melbourne. “I know what I’m capable of… It gives you a confidence boost when you see those names in the draw. Of course you are scared, but further into the tournament when I have some matches in, I feel I can beat a lot of players.
“Matches like these against Novak, if you can enjoy it during it, it’s a really nice occasion.”
Last season, the Dutchman had stunned Djokovic in Indian Wells after he entered the main draw as a lucky loser.
“I didn’t feel great at that time, but now I am feeling a little bit better tennis-wise,” Van de Zandschulp said, reflecting on their Indian Wells clash. “Hopefully that helps me… Here in Australia, it’s one of his favourite tournaments, one of his favourite courts, so it will be a different test. He was struggling there [in Indian Wells]. The conditions were tough: pretty hot, pretty bouncy.”
Botic also stunned Carlos Alcaraz in the second round of the US Open 2024. The 30-year-old also recalled playing against Rafael Nadal in the Davis Cup finals in 2024.
“Beating Alcaraz over five sets is not an easy task, but beating him 3-0 was something I couldn’t imagine before stepping on court,” Van de Zandschulp said. “[Beating] Rafa was also pretty special because it’s not often in tennis you know who you are going to play a month in advance.
“I found out that it was going to be his last tournament and that we were going to play Spain in the quarters. If he was going to play, I would be the one to play him, so I thought a lot about the match when usually you don’t have time to. That was, mentally, the toughest match for me.”
