"Things are progressing slowly but surely" says Novak Djokovic following Serbia Open final loss
ATPMonday, 25 April 2022 at 02:15
Updated at Friday, 08 November 2024 at 20:44
Following his narrow loss in Sunday's Serbia Open final to Andrey Rublev, Novak Djokovic hopes to draw inspiration from his performance in Belgrade.
The Serbian attempts to build on his recent success in the coming weeks. He overcame Laslo Djere, Miomir Kecmanovic, and Karen Khachanov in front of the home crowd, but he was unable to make a last push against Rublev as he struggled in the deciding set of the 2022 Serbia Open, losing 2-6, 7-6(4), 0-6.
Still, his stay at the ATP 250 tournament in the Serbian capital has been positive for the home hero, as he got to play in front of the home crowd, and he played the maximum amount of matches, despite losing the last one.
"I have to look at the positives. [I] played the final in front of my home crowd. It was unfortunate that in the third set I ran out of gas and couldn’t give it more of a fight. Congrats to Andrey for playing another great week. He is at the top of the men’s game and one of the best players for a reason."
"I could have easily lost in the first match, so after four tough three-set battles all I can say is I am tired. Winning the tough three-set battles before this match will serve me well for the continuation of the season."
After the match, Djokovic also admitted that he ran out of steam during the match, and he felt it already towards the end of the second set, which he still managed to win in the tie-break, but the third-set result reflected his lack of stamina.
"I didn’t feel too tired until the end of the second set. The 5-4 game was a long game and that is when I started to not feel great. I think I played well in the tie-break."
"I came out ready to fight another set, but it wasn’t [a] very pleasant thing for people to see on the court, so I am sorry for that kind of experience as I knew people wanted to see me fight and try and win. But it wasn’t to be this time."
“At least this bad feeling physically came in the fourth match rather than the first match in Monte Carlo. Things are progressing slowly but surely."
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