Djokovic’s reign at the Australian Open came to an end at the hands of Sinner, who dispatched him 6-1 6-2 6-7(6) 6-3 in the semi-final. It brought an end to the world No. 1’s 33-match, six-year unbeaten run in Melbourne, and Sinner went on to lift his first Major title.
Following his defeat, Djokovic admitted it was one of the “worst Grand Slam matches” he’d ever played. The 36-year-old had a difficult run in Melbourne, dropping sets to Dino Prizmic and Alexei Popyrin in his first two matches. Djokovic’s coach has now reacted to his first-ever Australian Open semi-final defeat, admitting he wasn’t at his best throughout the tournament.
“Sooner or later he had to lose, we were all aware of that,” Ivanisevic told Sportske Novosti. “It’s just a shame that it happened this way, but against Sinner if you’re not 100 per cent, you have nothing to ask for. And even when you’re at 100 per cent, you can still lose.
“However, the whole Australian Open was somehow not right for Novak, from the first round onwards. Well, let’s move on, it’s nothing so tragic.” It was a disappointing trip to Australia by Djokovic’s standards, as he also lost to Alex de Minaur at the United Cup in Perth.
He picked up a wrist injury during the team tournament but claimed he was all good by the time the Australian Open started. In Melbourne, Djokovic had also been dealing with the flu during the earlier rounds and was seen blowing his nose on the court. Recent Serbian reports also claimed that his illness reared its head on the eve of the semi-final.
But Ivanisevic has now confirmed that he was healthy during the loss to Sinner and claimed he was happy that the defeat came to the world No. 4. Djokovic’s coach continued: “No, nothing bothered him, he was healthy, but it just didn’t work out…
