Today on Clay: Djokovic tops Van Assche in three; Gauff prevails on "a surface I grew to love"; Sabalenka routs Krejcikova

WATCH: Coco Gauff wins a third-set tiebreaker over Veronika Kudermetova

The European red-clay season is fully underway, with tournaments ongoing in Stuttgart, Barcelona, Munich and Banja Luka—and with combined, 1000-level events in Madrid and Rome on the horizon.

Here are three results from Wednesday's action that caught our eye:

Stuttgart: Aryna Sabalenka d. Barbora Krejcikova, 6-2, 6-3

Sabalenka doesn't seem to have forgotten Krejcikova's victory over her in Dubai earlier this year. It was an odd score—0-6, 7-6 (2), 6-1—and now, the result looks like even more of an outlier. For in the time since, the Australian Open champion has beaten the Czech three times—in Indian Wells, Miami and today in Stuttgart—to improve her head-to-head record to 5-1.

The Belarusian's 6-3, 6-2 win in Miami was fairly one-sided, but her tennis on Wednesday was utterly dominant.

"She's got it all going on," Mark Petchey noted from the commentary booth on Tennis Channel, after a smooth Sabalenka volley winner.

She also never faced a break point, with her serve's accuracy compared to that of "an atomic clock."

With Krejcikova under siege while hitting second serve, Petchey went so far as to suggest this alternative approach:

"As ludicrous as this is going to sound, you almost feel as though a very quick underarm serve, low, is going to be better than what she's throwing at her at the moment."

It's not as if Krejcikova is a 150th-ranked qualifier, or a lucky loser just happy to be in the main draw. She's a former Roland Garros champion, ranked 12th in the world in singles and second in doubles. But when you win just 4 of 21 second-serve points, desperate measures are considered.

Krejcikova never went through with Petchey's suggestion, but maybe she should when they meet again?

Banja Luka: Novak Djokovic d. Luca Van Assche, 6-7 (4), 6-3, 6-2

Van Assche served for the first set, and Djokovic broke back. Van Assche still took the first set, but Djokovic ran away with the second. Van Assche broke to open the third set; Djokovic immediately responded with a break of his own.

Every time Van Assche made inroads on an opponent who owns more Grand Slam titles than he does years on Earth, Djokovic—along with the partisan Balkan crowd—responded.

This comes as no surprise, given Djokovic's pedigree and motivation to do well at what is essentially a home tournament (the Srpska Open was relocated from Belgrade, but it's still supported by the Novak Djokovic Foundation). But that shouldn't take away from Van Assche's efforts. Coco Gauff, 19, was as impressive in victory today as the 18-year-old Frenchman was in defeat.

It wouldn't be a Djokovic victory without a side of frustration, though. He lost the first-set tiebreaker with three consecutive unforced errors; he pressed at times, especially on serve; his game was as clean as his socks in this red-dirt duel. Credit Van Assche, who will garner plenty of his own crowd support at Roland Garros.

"It wasn't easy," Djokovic said afterward. "I mean, this probably would rank as the slowest court and slowest conditions I've played in, to be honest.

"I couldn't penetrate through the court, I couldn't put any ball past him. He was on every single ball for a set and a half, until I could get some rhythm going and some tempo."

But it was nearly impossible to envision Djokovic actually dropping this contest, coming off an earlier-than-expected loss in Monte Carlo and despite any possible injury. The Serbian wore an elbow sleeve at times, but eschewed it in the latter stages.

"I'm happy with the way I finished the match," Djokovic said. "Of course, I can always play better, but a win is a win."

The world No. 1 will face Dusan Lajovic or Gregoire Barrere next in this strong 250-level tournament.

Stuttgart: Coco Gauff d. Veronika Kudermetova, 6-2, 4-6, 7-6 (3)

Gauff's doubles partner Jessica Pegula may be the busiest player in tennis, but even she took a week off following the U.S.' successful Billie Jean King Cup tie last weekend. Not Gauff, who went right from hard courts in Delray Beach, Fla. to clay courts in Germany.

The decision paid immediate dividends, as the 19-year-old earned a confidence-building victory over Kudermetova—ranked 13th in the world, but actually unseeded in a loaded Stuttgart draw.

"I was on a hard court three days ago, in the U.S. three days ago—I knew it was going to be tough for me today, so I was just taking it for what it is," said Gauff afterward. "Yes, I could have won in straights, but I mentally prepared myself for that happening."

Given how poorly Gauff played in last year's Roland Garros final (keep in mind, it was her first time on such a stage, and she was facing a searing-hot Iga Swiatek), it can be easy to forget how adept the American is on the surface. But she's been playing on red clay since she was 10, won a trip to Paris to compete for a wild card into the junior French Open at 15 (among other tennis-driven trips to Europe) and she also reached the quarterfinals on the terre battue in 2021.

"I have a bit of experience on clay, compared to most Americans, especially red clay," she said in Stuttgart. "It's a surface I grew to love."

It won't get any easier for Gauff at the Porsche Grand Prix, given its top-notch field. Next up is the hard-hitting Anastasia Potapova, who also advanced in a third-set tiebreaker.

But while the quick change in surfaces might seem abrupt, Gauff finds the courts in Stuttgart quicker than most red clay in Europe, easing the transition.

"I like to start on a faster court," she said, "because then the game seems a lot slower for the rest of the clay season."