Novak Djokovic wishes to win the Davis Cup with Serbia once more before he retires, but that won't be happening this year as the country stumbled in the qualifiers against Slovakia.
The Serbian loves to play for his country even though the nature of his career doesn't allow him to do it often. The Davis Cup has never had such great timing in the calendar, especially for one of the best players in the world like Djokovic.
Majors and ATP Masters 1000 tournaments logically often take priority, but the Serbian found the time when he could. He played at the Davis Cup Final Eight last year but couldn't overcome a growing problem for him - Jannik Sinner.
The Italian saved three match points in that match which proved crucial for the country in beating Serbia. Djokovic was devastated. He wanted to win the Davis Cup once more before he retired.
It's a stated goal of his, especially since he led the country to win only one trophy - back in 2010. However, it won't be happening this year either, as the country is out already in the qualifying.
Despite playing hosts to Slovakia, Serbia failed to get it done, losing both singles on day one and the doubles on day two. They were without Djokovic, who didn't participate in the competition, which hurt them badly, but even without Djokovic, they were expected to pull through.
Top-50-ranked Miomir Kecmanovic stepped up for the first match against world number 142 Lukas Klein, and he lost 6-7(2) 2-6. That was a bad loss, but Dusan Lajovic didn't do any better in the second singles match, losing to world no. 122, Alex Molcan 6-4, 2-6, 0-6.
If Serbia wanted to win, they needed to win all three matches on day two. The doubles were played first, and they couldn't even win the first match. Nikola Cacic and Miomir Kecmanovic lost to Lukas Klein and Igor Zelenay 6-7(5), 3-6
While Slovakia secured a historic win for the country, Serbia is out of the 2024 Davis Cup, and Djokovic has one less chance to win the trophy with the country.
0 Comments