It’s a fun night for tennis

NEW YORK – Novak Djokovic defeated Andy Murray 6-3, 7-6 (2) in an exhibition tennis match at Madison Square Garden on Monday night.

The friends and rivals mixed the usual exhibition hijinks with some long rallies reminiscent of their epic Grand Slam matchups.

Murray said Monday morning that last week in Acapulco was the first time since his September surgery that his back wasn’t bothering him after matches. He missed four months after the minor procedure to alleviate nagging pain.

Djokovic was in his element. A born showman who always has fun with the New York crowd at the U.S. Open, he did pushups in penance after he shanked an overhead into the net on one game point.

Murray, who rarely cracks a smile, played along with the lighter side of the night, once high-fiving a fan after hooking in a winner down the line.

During one changeover, they pulled their phones out of their bags and met at the net to take a couple of selfies. Both tweeted them during the next break.

The doubleheader opened with the Bryan brothers – Bob and Mike – beating John and Patrick McEnroe 8-3 in doubles.