Novak Djokovic crashed out of the Paris Masters on Wednesday as the 24-time Grand Slam champion lost 2-6, 6-3, 6-3 to Australian qualifier Rinky Hijikata in the second round.
The shock defeat to the world number 83 ended the 39-year-old Serb’s hopes of qualifying for the ATP Finals later this month.
Djokovic told reporters after the match his plan for the next few weeks was “just rest”.
“I’m looking forward to it,” he added.
After sailing through the first set, Djokovic soon found himself in a battle.
Hijikata broke Djokovic in the eighth game of the second frame before serving out to force a decider.
The third set ground on until the Serb cracked serving at 3-3 to hand his unfancied opponent a chance at victory, which he duly took with a second break to seal the match in style.
Djokovic, a seven-time champion in Paris, said he felt “disappointment obviously, losing a match that I felt like I was dominating for the first set”.
But he heaped praise on Hijikata for the way he responded.
“He was switched on, I wasn’t serving as well and he was just playing out of his mind honestly. He was not missing and keeping the ball low and just a terrific performance,” Djokovic said.
“He played really amazing tennis and it was my fault to let the control of the match go.”
The former world number one followed current top-ranked player Alexander Zverev in exiting the Paris Masters in a day full of upsets.
Top-eight seeds Daniil Medvedev, Frances Tiafoe and Alex de Minaur all also met with second-round defeats.
Source: Khaleej Times