The struggles continue for Novak Djokovic. And from the looks of things, they aren’t going away any time soon.
Just as he did in Indian Wells, Djokovic crashed out of the Miami Open right away–this time with a disconcerting 6-3, 6-4 loss to Benoit Paire on Friday afternoon. The 12-time Grand Slam champion recorded more double-faults (three) than aces (two) and won only 53 percent of his first-serve points before exiting in one hour and seven minutes.
Djokovic remained on serve until 3-3 in the first set, when Paire seized an initial break and then struck again for another scalp of his opponent’s serve at 5-3. Although Djokovic briefly fought back from an early break deficit in the second, he never entirely turned the tide in his favor. Paire steadied himself with a crucial and emphatic hold at 4-4 and broke the Serb at love in the following game to clinch his upset victory in abrupt and relatively unceremonious fashion.
Day 3 highlights:
“I mean, I’m trying but it’s not working,” Djokovic admitted. “That’s all. That’s all it is. “Obviously I’m not feeling great when I’m playing this way. Of course I want to be able to play as well as I want to play; just it’s impossible at the moment.
“I felt I started the match well, first six games, then I just ran out of gas…. I’m not at the level that I used to be. I’m aware of that. I just have to obviously believe in myself and hopefully it will come.”
All that’s coming right now are historically bad results. The former world No. 1 has now lost three matches in a row dating back to the fourth round of the Australian Open, where he fell to Hyeon Chung. Djokovic then lost to Taro Daniel at the BNP Paribas Open. Prior to Friday, he had not dropped three straight matches since 2007. The loss to Paire marked the 30-year-old’s first in Miami since 2013, where he captured three consecutive titles before not playing in 2017.
“I wanted to come to Indian Wells and Miami because I wanted to see whether I [could] play a match,” Djokovic explained. “I love playing on the hard court. I wanted to get a couple tournaments before the clay court season starts. I obviously wasn’t ready.
“I don’t know what to expect,” he added after being asked if he anticipates a return to his peak form sometime in the future. “I’m not expecting anything…. Obviously I’m facing myself with various challenges in my game, health. I’m trying to figure things out and see what happens.”
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