Novak Djokovic literally didn't look like himself and failed at the start in Indian Wells, reports sportal.bg. The record holder for Grand Slam titles won left the "Masters" tournament in the second round after losing 2:6, 6:3, 1:6 to Dutchman Botik van den Zandschulp. This is the third consecutive defeat for the 37-year-old Djokovic after those to Alexander Zverev in the semifinals of the Australian Open and to Matteo Berrettini in Doha.
After somehow managing to pull out the first game, the Serb allowed himself to lose the next five games, with Van de Zandschulp making a series of 13 consecutive points won. At 1:5, Nole managed to recover and win a game on his own serve, but that was all he could do in the first set.
A completely different picture was seen on court number 1 in the second set. Novak quickly took a 3:0 lead. Djokovic's streak was interrupted by Van de Zandschulp with a well-played game on his own serve, but Djokovic quickly increased his lead to 4:1, and then with another break to 5:1. The Serb allowed his opponent to return one of the two breaks, and then to reduce his deficit to 3:5. However, there was no surprise and the five-time champion in Indian Wells tied the sets.
The decisive set started evenly. After 1:1, however, Djokovic seemed to disappear from the court. By the end of the match, he allowed his opponent to make two breaks and failed to win a single game. Thus, Botik van de Zandshulp deservedly qualified for the third round, where he will face Francisco Cerundolo. Djokovic last won the Indian Wells title in 2016, and in 2024 he was eliminated in the third round by Luca Nardi.
Surprise! Zandschulp knocks Djokovic out of Indian Wells
The Serb literally didn't look like himself
Mar 9, 2025 11:18 65
