Novak Djokovic sounded confident about his US Open chances during his pre-tournament press conference, brushing aside the significance of his early exit in Cincinnati. But that defeat may have been more telling than the Serb initially thought. On opening day at Flushing Meadows, Djokovic was in for another difficult night, one that eventually ended in tears.
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Novak Djokovic leaves US Open in tears
Winning the fourth game, which saw the crowd rise to him, but rather than an energetic response from Djokovic, the Serb was in tears, feeling the end was near. In an even more poignant moment, Djokovic’s wife appeared to leave the box, while two of his children, Tara and Stefan, watched on with visibly forlorn expressions.
Jelena returned to the stands as Djokovic slipped to a 6-1 loss in the fifth set, finishing his chances of winning a 25th Major before it even started.
With Carlos Alcaraz coming in injured and Jannik Sinner not being there, this was a great possibility for the Serb to go deep at Flushing Meadows. However, what turned out to be his longest first-round match at a Slam, the Serb had a first-round exit at a Slam for the first time since the 2006 Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic loses the first Set despite getting a lead
A first-round fixture against Mariano Navone was nothing to sweat over for someone like Djokovic, but the Argentine proved that notion wrong quickly. It was the Serb who started the match strong, taking a 3-0 lead, only for Navone to fight back and force a tiebreak in the first set. The 25-year-old kept his cool and got the job done under pressure, winning 7-5 in the tiebreak.
Novak Djokovic Wins a Long Rally and Wins the Second and Third Sets
The second set was a close affair as well, with the Serb finding it too difficult to crack his opponent’s serve, but found the opening in the twelfth game, winning the second set 7-5. Once again, one break of serve proved enough in the third set once again, with the Serb winning it 6-4. The second set had a rally which was a 25-plus shot barrage of baseline strokes, which the Serb won with a signature backhand winner.
However, the match was full of long rallies and long service holds on both sides of the net. Navone, who has impressive clay-court skills, brought the same to the hard courts at Arthur Ashe with great effectiveness, keeping play behind the baseline and making Djokovic move sideways.
Novak Djokovic Has a Repeat From His Cincinnati Loss at the US Open as the Serb Struggles Physically
By the end of the third set, the match had gone well over three hours, with Nole visibly hunching over after every point and even vomiting on the court during the third set. He was also spotted using an inhaler and taking tablets during the fourth set.
However, when the Serb got a break to have a 2-1 lead in the fourth set, it looked like the match was nearing its conclusion. That was not to be, as the physical struggles increased for the Serb, and he lost all power on his serve, and his court coverage went down dramatically, as Navone won four consecutive games to win the set 6-2.
The scenes were all too similar to those of Djokovic’s Cincinnati loss against Thiago Augustin Tirante, where the Serb had a bout of vomiting in his match and admitted to suffering from a physical condition in the heat. His match on Arthur Ashe was under the roof, but conditions in New York were muggy and humid, which had its toll on the Serb.
Novak Djokovic Takes a Medical Timeout in the Fifth Set
With the match going past four hours and into a fifth set, the Serb called for a physio on court, who gave him a rubdown to his lower back for three minutes during the designated medical timeout. The crowd willed the Serb on for the last miracle, but the night was heading in the direction of a nightmare rather than a fairytale ending for the Serb.
Djokovic, not able to serve or move, was 0-3 down in no time in the fifth set, as the Serb struggled to serve or even move on the court. He still won the fourth game, which saw the crowd rise to him, but rather than an energetic response from Djokovic, but the Serb could not get his mojo going.