Djokovic was left in disbelief by the Indian Wells umpire.
Top-seeded Djokovic unexpectedly lost to world No. 123 Nard in the third round of the Indian Wells Masters on Monday, falling 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to the world No. 1.
Nardi had a break point and Djokovic was up 2-0 in the second set, so the Italian seemed to lose faith in the Serb’s serve. Nevertheless, Nardi continued to hit the ball, which found its way onto Djokovic’s side. The 20-year-old then went on to play and win the point, while the Serb volleyed the ball into the Italian’s side of the court but stopped.
Djokovic noted that Nardi halted and asked chair umpire Allensworth where there was a hindrance call after losing the point and being broken back. When told by Allensworth that Nardi’s stopping didn’t mean that the point stopped as well,. Djokovic looked stunned and even asked the chair umpire if he was “blagging” him.”
“Just because he stops doesn’t mean the point stops. What are you talking about? You saw that reaction; he literally stopped. He completely confused me, and I stopped as well. How can you not make that judgement? Are you blaming me or what?” Djokovic responded.
After directly telling Allensworth he wanted him to call hindrance, Djokovic added: “The situation was such that he thought the ball was out, and he just stopped, and that’s it.”
Allensworth disagreed, though.
“My argument is that he should not lose the point because of it. I would completely agree with you if he had said “out” or pointed out, but since he did nothing to address the point, Allensworth explained.
Djokovic didn’t hold back when assessing his performance
Although Djokovic entered the match as the huge favorite, it was Nardi who made the first move after breaking the Serb in the fifth game and then holding his serve for the remainder of the set to clinch the first set.
After opening an early 2-0 second-set lead and then getting broken back in the third game, where he felt that the chair umpire missed a hindrance call, Djokovic still won the set after breaking Nardi again in the sixth game.
But forcing a third set didn’t lead to Djokovic drastically improving his level, as he lost the match after Nardi earned the only break of the decider in the sixth game. Also, it should be mentioned that Djokovic didn’t have a single break point during the third set.
After finishing with 31 unforced errors and getting upset by a player ranked outside the top 100, Djokovic gave credit to Nardi for his performance but also made it clear that he wasn’t happy with his own performance at all.
“I helped him play well, and I didn’t help myself at all,” Djokovic said.
“I made some really terrible unforced errors. Just quite defensive tennis, and, you know, not much on the ball in the third, and that’s it. You know, he just stepped in, and he used the time that he had. He was playing more free and more aggressive than I did, and going for his shots and that break on 3-2 in the third was enough.”
Djokovic on not having any titles in 2024
The season being in mid-March and Djokovic not having won a title is quite an odd sight. However, it should be noted that Indian Wells was Djokovic’s third tournament of the year.
Djokovic had previously represented Australia in the United Cup, where his team was defeated by Australia, to begin his 2024 campaign. Djokovic did not return from Australia with a title, having lost to Jannik Sinner in the semifinals of the Australian Open, his first setback in a long time.
Yes, this year has seen no titles. I am not accustomed to that. For the majority of his career, Djokovic stated, “I was beginning the season with a Grand Slam win, or, you know, a Dubai win, or any tournament.”
“No worries. It is a component of the sport, you know. All you have to do is concede. You win some, and you lose some. I am hoping to keep going and win some more.
“Of course, to break the kind of negative cycle I am having in the last three or four tournaments where I have not really been close to my best, I guess every trophy that eventually comes my way will be great.”
