Novak Djokovic fans had to experience an unexpected fate at the Italian Open. Soon after the Serb made a comeback after a break, he faced Corentin Moutet, a fan lobbed a water bottle at his head – whether intentional or not, no one knows. The next day, Djokovic faced a disappointing defeat against Alejandro Tabilo, an underdog. As the world experienced this shocking reality, discussions started to revolve around Djokovic’s form, inviting former pros to drop their perspectives as well.

In a recent episode of the Tennis Channel Live Podcast, retired American pro Andy Roddick talked about the hype surrounding “locker room auras”, pointing at a possibility that people might be just carried away with it. He stated, “Just because someone’s good doesn’t mean as professionals we go there just lay down and roll over like that’s not a real thing,” pointing at Djokovic’s unexpected defeat over a lower-ranked player.

Drawing from his own experience of facing the top-ranked tennis stars in the scene, Roddick compared facing Djokovic to his encounters with Roger Federer while he stood at the peak of his career. He admitted, “When I was playing peak Roger in a final, I felt like I had to be close to perfect, walking onto the court and that creates its own pressure.”

Roddick’s comment not only highlighted the transitioning aspect of facing top players and the pressure it can impose but also tried to point at the diminishing effect of Nole. While Djokovic’s defeat may be because of the lack of training, Roddick’s comment raised speculations about a different reality. As Djokovic currently analyzes his situation, it still remains to be seen if he will be able to cope with the levels at the upcoming clay-court major.

Novak Djokovic lists the possible reason behind his defeat

Soon after Novak Djokovic walked out of the court with disappointment on his face, he was exposed to a tricky question. On being asked if the bottle drop incident had anything to do with the defeat against Alejandro Tabilo, Djokovic appeared to be confused, accepting that there might be a contribution.

“I don’t know, to be honest. I have to check that. Training was different. I was going for kind of easy training yesterday. I didn’t feel anything, but I also didn’t feel the same,” he said, affirming that he didn’t really feel well after being hit by the metal bottle.

As the tennis star currently struggles with his form, it still remains to be seen if he will be able to regain his full potential and end the title drought of this season.