Novak Djokovic opened up about the grueling physical discomfort he endured after suffering a shocking first-round defeat to Mariano Navone at the US Open. The Serb made a strong start with a 3-0 lead. However, the young Argentine forced a tie-breaker and won to clinch the set.
Djokovic staged a comeback in the second set. In the third set, the Serbian star was seen struggling physically on the court. He vomited into the courtside bin. Despite the fitness troubles, he broke Navone to take a 5-4 lead before claiming the set. However, a back issue in the fourth set marred his rhythm, which Navone took advantage of.
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The Argentine player claimed the last two sets to defeat the 24-time Grand Slam Champion 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 in the first round after a four-hour 36-minute faceoff. Following the heartbreaking loss, Djokovic reflected on his performances this year, stating that he has been struggling with vomiting and cramps in almost all matches.
“It’s been a horrible feeling for me on the court,” Djokovic said. “This is something that, unfortunately, I’ve been dragging along in practically every match this year. Vomiting, having retches… After that, my whole body basically starts to break down, with cramps and pain. In the end, my back and shoulder also gave out, and I couldn’t finish the match. I was a break up in the fourth set, but I had already been struggling a lot from the fourth game onwards.”
Djokovic further stated that he did not enjoy his time on the court and added that he is yet to figure out how he is going to solve his ongoing physical problems.
“I don’t want to take anything away from his victory. Congratulations to him. He’s a good guy and a fighter. But I didn’t have fun out there. I don’t know [how I can solve it]. At the moment, I don’t want to go into too much detail. I’m just trying to understand what’s going on and how much longer I can keep going like this.”
Novak Djokovic’s loss marked his first opening-round exit since the 2006 Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic takes pride in competing in his 20th US Open
Novak Djokovic made his 20th appearance at the 2026 US Open. In a pre-tournament press conference, he took pride in having been consistent and achieving his aim of having a healthy career.
“Very proud of that,” Djokovic said. “Obviously, you know, longevity was always one of the goals when I was younger. You know, trying to have a long career, trying to have more shots at Grand Slams and stay healthy long enough so that I can, you know, perform as many years as possible. So, it’s great to know that I’m back at the Slams 20 years in a row. Uh, I’ve seen it somewhere. There’s like three, four of us that played, I think back in 2006.” (0:23 onwards)
Novak Djokovic joins the exclusive list alongside Jimmy Connors, Andre Agassi and Feliciano Lopez for achieving the milestone.
Edited by Janhavi Shinde