Novak Djokovic lost a nearly five-hour match to Mariano Navone at the US Open on Sunday, August 30, and the tennis legend seemed to struggle through every minute.
Djokovic, 39, is regarded as arguably the greatest male tennis player of all-time, but he was reduced to vomiting into a bucket on the sideline and tearing up as the crowd cheered him on during the upset loss.
“It was obvious that it was an awful feeling on the court for me,” Djokovic told reporters, adding he has been dealing with injury. “It’s something that I’ve been carrying, unfortunately, pretty much every match this year: vomiting, throwing up, a serious issue there. Then my whole body starts to collapse, basically cramping and pain. Yeah, the back just gave up in the end and shoulder, and I couldn’t close it out.”
Cameras caught Djokovic, who made 70 unforced errors, throwing up on the sideline during the match. He also appeared to cramp up, needed to use an inhaler and took several pills as he attempted to get through the marathon match.
Djokovic’s loss was more than a surprising first-round exit. It was the first time he’s lost in the first or second round at the US Open in his last 37 tries — and his earliest elimination in any major since 2006.
In defeat, Djokovic gave credit to the Argentine underdog Navone, 25.
“I was a break up in the fourth, but just struggled all the way since the fourth game of the match,” Djokovic said. “Again, I don’t want to take too much out of his win. Congrats to him. He’s a nice guy, a fighter. But I didn’t enjoy myself.”
With Djokovic nine months from his 40th birthday, it’s fair to wonder whether he will get another shot at the US Open. Asked if his unnamed “ailment” was fixable, he replied, “I don’t know. I’m trying, man. I’m trying. Let’s see.”
Navone, for his part, was quick to praise Djokovic, a four-time US Open winner with his most recent crown coming in 2023.
“Novak is the GOAT in this sport. Beating him at the US Open, Arthur Ashe, is one of the first moment[s] I have in tennis,” Navone said. “When you’re a kid and you’re thinking [you want] to play tennis, the biggest stage in the tennis world is very important for you. When you have the chance to play against him, you wish and you dream to beat him in these kinds of settings because you grew up with that. So yeah, it’s a dream come true. It was a pleasure.”
