Novak Djokovic lost to Australian 28th seed Alexei Popyrin, and therefore missed the US Open fourth round for the first time in sixteen years.
Novak Djokovic lost to Alexei Popyrin
In four sets (4-6, 4-6, 6-2, 4-6) in the Arthur Ashe Stadium on Friday, August 30, the reigning champion was defeated. For the first time since 2017, Djokovic will end the year without winning a Grand Slam tournament. Playing in his first hard-court competition since March, Djokovic was lackluster, giving Popyrin the upper hand in the opening two sets. The Serb paid the price for leaving it a little too late as he committed a string of careless mistakes while attempting to win a record-tying 25th Grand Slam championship.The unexpected upset occurred one day after Carlos Alcaraz, the third seed and 2022 champion, was eliminated in the second round. In the history of the US Open men’s singles competition, this is the first occasion since 1973 that the second and third seeds have lost before the fourth round. Despite his eight Grand Slam comebacks from a two-set deficit, Novak Djokovic’s Friday match against the Serb ended in a 4-6, 4-6, 6-2, 4-6 loss in three hours and 19 minutes. Popyrin achieved the greatest victory of his professional career to advance to a Grand Slam tournament’s fourth round for the first time.
