Alejandro Tabilo stunned the 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic by winning 6-2, 6-3 in the Rome Open third round on Sunday.
In less than an hour, 32nd-ranked Chilean Tabilo stopped Djokovic’s attempt to win a record-extending 41st Masters 1000 championship. Tabilo was incredibly impressive and won his maiden match against a top-10 opponent.
The 36-year-old’s easy victory over Corentin Moutet in the second round was followed by his elimination two days later after he unintentionally got hit in the head with a bottle.
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Though he shrugged it off by wearing a bike crash helmet to practice on Saturday, his quiet play on a court where he has won six titles hinted he might still be feeling the effects of that hit.
The last major tournament before Roland Garros later this month suffered a blow with Djokovic’s early exit, as it began without the presence of world number two Jannik Sinner of Italy and third-ranked Carlos Alcaraz.
Home supporters will also miss out on watching former Wimbledon champions Matteo Berrettini and Lorenzo Musetti, while seventh seed Hubert Hurkacz defeated Djokovic’s famous clay-court adversary Rafael Nadal, a major audience favorite, in the second round on Saturday.
However, Tabilo was a deserving winner after dominating his legendary opponent. In less than twenty minutes, he jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the opening set, twice breaking Djokovic and shocking the Serb with a string of strong wins.
Under the sweltering Rome sun, the Chilean won the first set in thirty minutes, leaving the shocked spectators in disbelief at the out-of-form Djokovic.
In the first game of the second set, he broke Djokovic for the third time right away, and he finished in incredible fashion to record his biggest career victory.
