Sometimes it happens in sport that the outsider beats the great champion. It doesn’t happen often. Above all, it doesn’t happen often to Novak Djokovic. The sensational affair took place at the BNP Paribas Open.
Djokovic, one of the favorites for the final victory on the eve of the tournament, was surprisingly and sensationally eliminated in the 3rd round by the Italian Luca Nardi, who became the tennis player with the lowest ranking (He’s No.123 – ed.) to beat the Serbian star in an ATP Masters 1000. Truly incredible.
Luca Nardi and Novak Djokovic© Matthew Stockman/Staff Getty Images Sport
Nole, at the press conference, congratulated Nardi, but recognized that he had expressed a level that did not live up to expectations.
"I want to congratulate him for playing fantastic tennis, especially in the third set. I didn’t know him very well, but I saw him play and I knew that he had great quality tennis from the baseline, especially the forehand. He moves well and he has great talent. He entered the draw as a lucky loser, so he really had nothing to lose.
He played great and deserved the victory. I was more surprised by my level though. My level was terrible. He’ll have a good day, I’ll have a really bad day. It’s a negative result for me. I will analyze the match to understand what I could have done better and move on.
Now I play fewer tournaments and I am more selective in choosing the calendar. So it’s not a good feeling to go out so early. I hadn’t played Indian Wells for five years and I wanted to do well, but it wasn’t in my destiny.
Next tournament? For the moment it remains Miami, but ten minutes ago I was on the field and I need to take a day or two to understand what I want to do. I made some terrible unforced errors. I played a defensive game," analyzed the Serbian champion.
Novak Djokovic© Getty Images Sport – Clive Brunskill 2024 is holding nasty surprises for Djokovic
2023 was a triumphal season for the Serbian champion. Overall, 2024 started off in a negative way. The semifinal at the Australian Open, as defending champion, was a nightmare for Djokovic, defeated in four sets by Jannik Sinner. And evidently Italy sat becoming a nightmare for him.
Considering the defeat against Nardi, Djokovic had never lost against a lucky loser in the ATP Masters 1000. A statistic that underlines the negative performance of the Serbian champion.
Djokovic did not find the right rhythm, both on serve and on return, and allowed the Italian to always take the initiative, displaying an at times passive attitude. Perhaps we need to stop for a moment and understand the situation, in view of the long and demanding part of the season which will begin with the clay swing and end with the Paris Olympic Games.