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Two days after being struck in the head by a bottle, which he claimed caused nausea and dizziness, Novak Djokovic called Alejandro Tabilo’s shocking third-round exit from the Rome Open “concerning”.
In less than an hour, Chilean Tabilo—ranked 32nd in the world—ended Djokovic’s attempt to capture a record-extending 41st Masters 1000 championship. Tabilo won 6-2, 6-3 to achieve his first victory over a top-10 opponent.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion speculated that his quiet play on a surface where he has six titles could
Wearing a bike crash helmet to training on Saturday morning, he had originally laughed off getting hit on the head by a hard water bottle after his easy victory over Corentin Moutet in the second round.
To tell the truth, I have no idea. I need to investigate that. Training was not the same. Yesterday, I had a rather simple training session. Djokovic said to reporters, “I didn’t feel anything, but I also didn’t feel the same.”
“Under extreme stress today, it was very awful—not in terms of pain, but in terms of this equilibrium. Not at all coordinated. The player has completely changed from two nights ago. In addition, Djokovic stated that he will get scans to “see what’s going on” prior to the French Open in Paris, where he will be concerned about both his form and the fallout from the bottle incident.
When Djokovic’s first victory of the season occurred at Wimbledon in 2018, it was the last time he entered Roland Garros empty-handed.
“Everything needs to be better in order for me to have at least a chance to win” a 25th Grand Slam, Djokovic said, with the French Open, where he is the defending champion, starting in two weeks.
“It felt like a whole new player stepped into my shoes on the court today,” Djokovic continued. “That raises some concerns.” The final match of the day on center court will feature third seed Alexander Zverev vs home hope Luciano Darderi, ranked 54th in the world, as the last major men’s tournament before Roland Garros is suddenly wide open as a result of Djokovic’s early elimination.
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