Novak Djokovic Makes Feelings Clear After Losing First Set to 22-Year-Old American Opponent

All eyes on Novak Djokovic at the US Open! The Serb is looking to mark his 25th Grand Slam milestone after taking time off since his semifinal Wimbledon loss. And now, he’s making strides in New York! Following a straight-set victory in his opening round against Learner Tien, Nole just delivered yet another victory to make it to the R3. However, it was no walk in the park for him, and he’s honest about it!

Taking on American qualifier Zachary Svajda, the 24-time slam champion struggled initially to find his rhythm, costing him the first set. However, he pulled through to pull off a 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 victory into the next round. While he claimed a new milestone of reaching the R3 for the 75th time, overtaking Roger Federer’s record of 74 at the US Open!

However, Djokovic admitted he was bothered by that opening set. In his post-match interview, when asked about his form, he said, “Not that great, to be honest. I wasn’t really happy with my tennis for the first part of the match, but also credit to Zach for playing some really high-quality tennis.” It’s true, the American qualifier shone on the court, pushing Djokovic from the start.

Novak Djokovic stumbled early, committing 14 unforced errors in a low-quality first set and then found himself 1-3 behind in the third set. But the 38-year-old turned up his intensity as Svajda battled a leg issue that slowed his serve to below 90 mph in the later sets. Nole capitalized on Svajda’s physical drop-off, dominating the final stages to secure the win. But he couldn’t help feel for his opponent.

“Unfortunate that he obviously struggled with injury towards the end of the second (set), but kudos to him for staying on the court. It was obvious he couldn’t serve as well as he did for a set and a half. I wished him all the best at the net, I think he’s playing really well,” he empathized with Svajda, making the moment a good display of sportsmanship.