Navone Stuns Djokovic in Five-Set US Open Showdown
Novak Djokovic has rewritten just about every line in tennis history. On Sunday night in New York, another line appeared beside his name — one he never wanted.
For the first time, Djokovic went out in the first round of the US Open.
Under the lights at Flushing Meadows, 39-year-old Djokovic was dragged into a four-and-a-half-hour battle by Mariano Navone and never quite escaped his own body. The Argentine, unflinching and relentless, came from behind to stun the 24-time Grand Slam champion 7-6 (5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 in a match that ended just before midnight.
The scoreline tells one story. Djokovic’s physical unraveling tells another.
A Giant Topples, One Cramp at a Time
Djokovic has spent a career bending matches to his will, outlasting opponents in long, suffocating duels. On Arthur Ashe, the script flipped. He took the opening set in a tight tiebreak, then edged ahead by grabbing the third. Normally, that’s the moment he tightens the grip and walks away with the match.
Instead, his body walked out on him.
As the contest stretched deep into the New York night, Djokovic vomited on court at least once. His left foot cramped. His back tightened so badly he needed a medical timeout between the fourth and fifth sets. The familiar elastic movement and elastic belief that have defined his greatness began to fray.
“I didn’t enjoy myself,” Djokovic admitted afterward. “I think it was obvious that it was an awful feeling on the court for me.
“It’s something that I’ve been carrying, unfortunately, pretty much every match this year: vomiting, throwing up, a serious issue there. Then my whole body starts to collapse, basically cramping and pain. Yeah, the back just gave up in the end and shoulder, and I couldn’t close it out.”
The numbers on the scoreboard matched the images on court. Once Navone forced a fifth set, Djokovic’s movement dulled, his serve lost bite, and rallies that once ended with him dictating suddenly swung the other way. The last two sets flashed by 6-2, 6-1. For a player who built his empire on endurance, it was a brutal reversal.
Earliest Slam Exit in Two Decades
The defeat marks Djokovic’s earliest departure from a major since the 2006 Australian Open, when he lost to American Paul Goldstein. Back then he was an up-and-comer, still learning how to navigate best-of-five tennis. Now he leaves New York as a 24-time major winner, chasing a 25th that refuses to come.
He last lifted a Slam trophy here in 2023. Since then, the pursuit of that next milestone has run into a wall of physical issues. His early exit in Cincinnati earlier this month came with similar warning signs; his body faltered late, and the questions around his durability in grueling matches have only grown louder.
Navone simply refused to blink. He absorbed the pressure in the middle sets, weathered Djokovic’s surges, then pounced as the champion’s movement slowed. On a court where Djokovic has staged so many comebacks, it was the underdog who owned the night’s final act.
The chase for No. 25 moves on without him. The US Open, for once, will have to find its drama elsewhere.
