Novak Djokovic is reeling from his shock US Open defeat and the rest of 2024 appears to be laced with peril for the 24-time Grand Slam king.
Djokovic said he “played some of the worst tennis I have ever played” after he followed Carlos Alcaraz in crashing out of the US Open.
Alcaraz was the subject of one of the tournament’s biggest upsets when he was dumped out by world number 76 Botic van De Zandschulp on Thursday night.
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And 24 hours later, defending champion Djokovic joined him in leaving New York early after 28th seed Alexei Popyrin won 6-4 6-4 2-6 6-4 in the third round.
Defeat for Djokovic means it is the first time since 2017 he has not won a major title and is his earliest exit at a major since the Australian Open that year.
It extends the Serbian’s wait for a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title and, at 37, his domination may be coming to an end.
What comes next will say much about Djokovic’s commitment to continue to push for more at the top of the game, with confirmation that he will play for Serbia in their Davis Cup World Group I playoffs against Greece later this month.
Serbia need to win that tie to get back into a position to challenge for Davis Cup glory in 2025 and if Djokovic plays against Greece, it suggests he still has ambitions to win the Davis Cup once again next year.
He has also been entered into the Shanghai Masters, but it is unclear whether he will make the decision to fly to China to take part in that part of the ATP Tour season.
Djokovic has not played in Shanghai since 2019, but he will need to make a decision on whether to make the long trip this time as he is in danger of missing out on a place in the end-of-season ATP Finals in Turin in November.
The Serbian won the ATP Finals last year, beating Jannik Sinner in a thrilling final to confirm his status as the world No 1.
With his limited schedule and poor results, by his standards, on the first half of 2024, Djokovic is down in seventh place in this year’s ATP Race To Turin.
The top eight players in that list will play in the ATP Finals, with Alex de Minaur, Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul pushing to overtake Djokovic in the ATP Race at this year’s US Open.
The top eight players qualify for the lucrative ATP Finals, with Djokovic’s win at that event last year securing him 1,300 ATP Ranking points.
He also has 1,000 points to defend from his win at the Paris Masters event last year, but the biggest concern for Djokovic will be securing a chance to defend his ATP Finals title.
If he opted out of playing in China and didn’t enjoy success at this year’s Paris Masters, Djokovic may well be outside of the top eight places in the ATP Race To Turin.
Djokovic may not be too concerned about his ATP Ranking at this late phase of his career, but he will want to be part of the ATP Finals, where he is a seven-time champion.
He will need to improve on his performance if he is to get into the mix for a return to Turin, with Djokovic scathing of his performance, against Popyrin.
“Honestly, the way I felt and the way I played from the beginning of this tournament, third round is a success,” said Djokovic.
“I have played some of the worst tennis I have ever played, honestly, serving by far the worst ever.
“If you play on a quick surface like this without the serve, without the ability to win free points there, very low first-serve percentage, many double faults, then you can’t win.
“You can’t win, especially against the guys who are in form like Alexei who is serving big, puts a lot of pressure on your service game. It was just an awful match for me.”
