WATCH: Taylor Fritz taken aback upon learning about Novak Djokovic's surprise exit from Italian Open 2024
Novak Djokovic suffered a shock defeat against Alejandro Tabilo in the third round of the Italian Open. Taylor Fritz was informed about Djokovic's loss during his post-match interview, which left him shocked.
Djokovic flew past Corentin Moutet in the second round of the tournament 6-3, 6-1. He was expected to collect another win when he faced Tabilo in the third round. However, the Chilean never let the World No. 1 into the match.
Djokovic went 0-4 down in the first set and never recovered. He lost the match 2-6, 3-6 against Tabilo who created history by becoming the first Chilean to defeat a World No. 1 player since Fernando Gonzalez beat Roger Federer at the ATP Finals in 2007.
While Djokovic accepted his fate on center court, Fritz was busy battling it out against countryman Sebastian Korda at Pietrangeli. 11th-seed Fritz defeated 24th-seed Korda 6-3, 6-4 to advance to the fourth round.
During his post-match on-court interview, Fritz was informed about Djokovic's shock loss. Watch how Fritz was taken aback upon hearing the news:
Fritz has set up an enticing clash against eighth seed Grigor Dimitrov in the fourth round of the Italian Open. On the other hand, Tabilo will face Karen Khachanov in the fourth round.
“It’s a bit concerning" - Novak Djokovic believes head injury may have impacted his performance in the Italian Open 3R match
After his second-round win, Novak Djokovic was signing autographs for fans when one of the fans leaned too far forward and their water bottle hit the Serb on the head. Djokovic seemed to be badly hurt as he kneeled down initially and was taken away by the authorities.
On the next day, he looked in a jolly mood as he hilariously wore a helmet to protect himself when he arrived for practice.
However, during the third-round match, Djokovic felt the head injury may have impacted his performance.
“It was unexpected obviously. I wasn’t even looking up. Then I felt a very strong hit in the head. That has, yeah, really impacted me a lot. Been through half an hour, an hour of nausea, dizziness, blood, a lot of different things," Djokovic said during his post-match press conference.
“I managed to sleep okay. I had headaches. The next day was pretty fine, so I thought it’s okay. Maybe it is okay. Maybe it’s not," he added.
Djokovic explained that he felt like a completely different person on the court against Tabilo. He is considering getting himself tested.
“It’s a bit concerning. I didn’t do any scans or any tests. Right now, I feel like I should do it, so I will do it and let’s see. Let’s see what’s happening,” he said.
The Serb is encountering a difficult season as he has participated in four ATP events so far but has not been able to reach a single final.