The year 2018 was a peculiar one for Novak Djokovic in many ways. He lost in the quarter-finals of the Roland Garros to Marco Cecchinato. This would mark the second full year the Serb had not won a Grand Slam. And he was absolutely disgruntled about it.

Novak Djokovic on edge

The previous year, in 2017, Djokovic had opted to take time off the sport and undergo surgery on his elbow. That was after his exit from Wimbledon. He would return only in 2018, at the Australian Open, where he lost in the fourth round.

Djokovic, possibly, took that loss more in his stride because of his return from surgery. However, when the Serb lost in the quarter-finals of the Roland Garros, his frustration simply bubbled over.

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That was the curtest I have ever seen Novak Djokovic, but it was understandable. We could attribute the Australian Open loss earlier in the year to the shortage of match-fitness, but what about Roland Garros?

By the time Roland Garros arrived, Djokovic had been playing for a few months. He played most of the top-tier events en route the second Major of the season. At the Monte-Carlo Masters, he declared he was finally free of pain, despite his third-round loss.

The one significant match during the clay season was Novak’s semi-final clash against Rafael Nadal at Rome Masters. Nadal won the match 7-6(4), 6-3, but Djokovic played some good tennis. Rafa had to battle hard to win the match. Djokovic had not looked that dangerous on a tennis court for a while.

“It was a tough battle, I think a good level of tennis. It was a combination of tactics, a combination of great shots for both of us. It’s a very important victory for me. I’m very happy”, said Nadal after the match. 

Rafa was challenged to win the match that day on clay. Naturally, Novak’s confidence must have shot through the roof with that display. I guess he expected to do a lot better in Paris than he ended up with, hence, giving rise to the salty press-conference after his exit.

Funnily enough, Novak Djokovic went on to win Wimbledon and US Open in the following months to get back at the summit of the sport.