World No. 1 Novak Djokovic was left embarrassed as he was on the receiving end of a shock defeat at the 2024 United Cup, on Wednesday. The Serbian ace lost to Australia's Alex de Minaur in straight sets and it also raised questions about his fitness ahead of the Australian Open.
Djokovic crashed to a 4-6 4-6 defeat, and midway through the match, he began to have issues with his wrist and had to call the on-court physiotherapist for treatment.
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During the post-match press conference, Djokovic was asked about his injury and if he was worried about its impact ahead of his Australian Open title defence.
"I think I'll be okay, to be honest. You know, it did have quite an impact, you know, particularly on the forehand and serve. Again, I don't want to be spending too much time talking about it and taking away credit, the victory from de Minaur," he said.
"I mean, he was just very solid, as he always is. Congrats to him, to Australian team, and, you know, it is what it is for us. I guess we move on, and for me, with my thoughts in Melbourne," he further added.
{{/usCountry}}"I mean, he was just very solid, as he always is. Congrats to him, to Australian team, and, you know, it is what it is for us. I guess we move on, and for me, with my thoughts in Melbourne," he further added.
{{/usCountry}}Further speaking on his fitness, he said, "No, not much, to be honest. I knew that probably not going to be at my 100% physically, emotionally, mentally game-wise in the opening week of a season. Neither did I expect that."
"Neither did I want that, to be honest. It's all a part of the buildup for Australian Open, you know. So that's where I want to perform at my best. So again, it's never nice to lose a match, of course, but, you know, it's not really going to stay with me much," he further added.
After Djokovic's loss, his teammate Natalja Stevanovic lost to Australia's Ajla Tomljanovic, which saw the Oceania nation enter the semi-finals.