Novak Djokovic said he was hurt after suffering a shock second-round defeat to Jan-Lennard Struff at the Swiss Indoors, a result that has put his hopes of qualifying for the ATP Finals in serious doubt.
The fourth seed had never lost to the 36-year-old in their eight previous meetings, with Struff having previously only won one set against Djokovic at the 2020 Australian Open. The German caused a major upset, claiming a hard-fought 6-7(4) 7-5 7-6(5) comeback victory in two hours and 35 minutes.
Qualification hopes under threat
The defeat leaves Djokovic facing a tough battle to reach the season-ending championships in Turin. The seven-time former champion has not played the event since 2023, despite qualifying in the past two years, and has said those withdrawals were driven by injuries. He has made clear he wants to return this year.
Djokovic now sits almost 300 ranking points behind Rafael Jodar in the race to Turin, with Jodar currently holding the ninth and final qualification spot. Jannik Sinner has already ruled himself out of contention this year. With some of the Serb's main rivals still competing at ATP 500 events in Basel and Vienna this week, others can overtake him in the race.
Djokovic on the defeat
A second-round exit at the Swiss Indoors gives Djokovic just 50 ranking points for the week. The former champion took a wildcard into the tournament and made his first appearance in Basel since 2011, but admitted he was blown off the court by Struff.
“No, I don't think those three double service faults were the deciding factor. I think it's just that in the decisive moments, when I had break points, many times in the second and also at the beginning of the third set, he played some incredible shots and incredible points,” Djokovic told Sportal, having served three doubles while 5-6 down in the second set.
“Maybe there were one or two points where I could have been more aggressive, but all credit goes to him. It hurts that I lost, you know, he just played amazing tennis. I don't remember playing against someone who was this aggressive and this precise. He went with two first serves and it was just one of those matches.”
What's next for Djokovic
Djokovic is still expected to compete in next week's Paris Masters, which will be his final chance to make a big push for the ATP Finals. Should he not qualify for the year-end finale, the Paris Masters will likely be his last event of the season.
“I've only just come off the court so I'm still disappointed, but I'll be thinking about Paris in the next few days and hopefully I can play better there,” he added.
Struff, meanwhile, is enjoying a resurgent end to the season. A former world No. 31, he has struggled to find momentum in the last couple of years, partly due to injuries. He stormed into the Brussels final last week and has now beaten Djokovic for the first time in nine meetings.
“I knew needed to go for it. There was only one way to play it. So, I was very, very happy,” the world No. 41 said afterwards. “The last serve went in the corner like many balls today. I knew I had to play my best tennis to have a chance. Last eight times he beat me very, very easily. So, very, very happy and pleased with the performance.”
That wasn't the only upset in Basel, as Swiss wildcard Jerome Kym shocked top seed Ben Shelton late in the evening. The world No. 222 blew a 5-2 lead in the final set but recovered to win in the tiebreak, 6-3 6-7(4) 7-6(1).
