# Djokovic exits U.S. Open in shock third-round loss to Popyrin

Event date: 2024-08-30

Novak Djokovic's U.S. Open title defense came to an abrupt end on Friday night when Alexei Popyrin beat him 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4 in the third round. The AP report on the match said the defending champion was undone by a listless performance and especially by his serving, which Djokovic himself described as the worst he had ever produced. The result was one of the biggest shocks of the tournament and arrived a night after Carlos Alcaraz also exited early.

Djokovic's numbers told the story. He committed 14 double faults in the match and finished the tournament with 32. The second seed said he had played some of the worst tennis of his career and that the match had become an exercise in frustration because he could not find his game. He said he felt physically okay but emotionally flat, which matters at a Grand Slam where sharp decision-making and rhythm on serve can decide tight exchanges in a matter of minutes.

The loss also carried a wider historical sting. Djokovic was trying to move toward a record 25 Grand Slam singles titles, but instead he finished a season without a major for the first time since 2017. The AP report said he had undergone knee surgery in June and that fatigue after winning Olympic gold in Paris earlier in August may have played a role. Djokovic acknowledged that the trip from the Games to New York had left him mentally and physically drained, even if he did not have a specific injury complaint during the match.

Popyrin, ranked 28th, took full advantage of the opening. The Australian said he did not want Djokovic to stage a comeback after trailing by two sets to love, and he showed enough composure to keep the pressure on. The match was also notable because it left 2024 as the first tennis season since 2002 in which none of Djokovic, Rafael Nadal or Roger Federer won a Grand Slam title. That detail underlines how quickly the sport's established hierarchy can change when one of its central figures has an off night.

For Djokovic, the defeat equaled his worst result at Flushing Meadows. The AP report noted that he had previously gone out so early only in 2005 and 2006. For Popyrin, it was a breakthrough that came in front of a huge crowd and a guest box that included former Australian great Lleyton Hewitt. The result will be remembered less for the scoreline itself than for what it says about the state of the tournament: even the most accomplished player in the draw can be vulnerable if the serve disappears and the legs do not follow.

The day also belonged to the broader tournament narrative. With Alcaraz already gone and Djokovic out before the second week, the draw suddenly looked open in a way few expected. That is part of why the result felt so jarring: a routine third-round match became a hinge point for the whole men's event. For Djokovic, the margin was not fitness alone or one bad game but a combination of tired legs, loose serving and a rival ready to punish every opening.