One day after withdrawal Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open, Novak Djokovic was the next to fall, against all expectations, before Alexei Popyrin by 6-4, 6-4, 2-6 and 6-4 in three hours and 19 minutes in the third round of the last “Grand Slam” of the season. The current champion of the “great” New Yorker could not do anything, overtaken by a tennis player who occupies the 28th position of the ATP.
Without the Serbian, world number 2, and without Alcaraz, who fell in the second round on Thursday, Near Flushing has only one champion left in the competition after only five days of tournament: the Russian Daniel Medvedevwho won in the The Big Apple in 2021. The defeat of the Balkans, quadruple champion in New York, This will also prevent him from winning his 25th “Grand Slam” to break the tie with Marguerite Cour (24) as the tennis player with the most “big” titles in history.
It will not be able to match either Roger Federer, Pete Sampras and Jimmy Connors, who have the record of five titles of the The US Open in the “Open Era.” Additionally, 2024 will be the first year since 2017 that Djokovic will not win a “Grand Slam”. Also including Rafa Nadal and Roger Federer2024 will be the first year since 2002 without a “big one” for the “big three”.
We also have to go back to 2017 to find the last time Djokovic did not reach the round of 16 of a “Grand Slam”: it was in Australian Openwhere he lost in the second round and in five sets against Uzbekistan Denis Istomine.
Djokovic sinks
At 37 years old, Djokovic has just rounded off a legendary record with Olympic gold in Paris 2024, but for new York He arrived very weak physically, with little fuel and without having participated in any of the previous tournaments of the North American summer tour.
Furthermore, during the year 2024, he only played three tournaments on hard court, which is the surface of the last “big” of the year, and all of them took place during the first quarter of the year: the United Cup, the Australian Open (eliminated in the semi-final by Jannik Sinner) and Indian wells (eliminated in the third round against the Italian Luca Nardi also).
Instead, Djokovic I had this evening on the other side of the network a Popyrine This comes as he sealed his biggest success so far just two and a half weeks ago: the Montreal title, which was the first Masters 1000 in his showcase.
A spectacular Popyrin
With all this, Popyrineimperial this Friday, dominated with a firm hand the first two sets during the night session of the Arthur Ashe Stadium in front of a Djokovic that he did not achieve a single break during these two rounds and that he would finish the match with 14 double faults.
Despite the critical nature of the situation, for the Serb it was somehow familiar territory, since in 2023 and also in the third round in New York, he lost the first two sets against his compatriot. Laslo Djéré and ended up making an epic return to the game.
The reaction of the third round was exciting with three breaks for Djokovic and a set in the pocket on the fast track when things looked worse. The fourth set was a magnificent fight, with Djokovic and Popyrin exchanging right hands as the crowd Arthur Ashe I enjoyed the show.
The key moment of the evening came at 2-2. In a very long game by Djokovic on serve, Popyrin invented an impressive thunderbolt with his forehand and his cry, after achieving the “break”, was heard in every corner of the stadium. Nole’s resistance lasted a little longer while Popyrin won a gigantic victory and left the US Open throne empty and looking for an heir.
