Novak Djokovic has “lost his edge” and is “a shadow of what he was at his peak”, says 1987 Wimbledon champion Pat Cash.
The defending champion lost in five sets in round two of the Australian Open to world number 117 Denis Istomin.
The Serb, 29, won four Grand Slams in a row between 2015 and 2016 but has made only one of the past three finals.
“If we were doubting it before, we confirmed he’s not the same player he was six months ago,” said Cash.
Speaking to BBC Sport, the Australian added: “[Thursday’s defeat] just shows that Novak has absolutely lost his edge, there’s no doubt about that.”
Djokovic – who has slipped to number two in the world with Andy Murray taking the top spot in the rankings – completed a career Grand Slam in June 2016 when he beat Murray in the French Open final, but has struggled for form since then.
The loss to Istomin was Djokovic’s earliest exit from the Australian Open since 2006, when he was beaten in the first round by American Paul Goldstein.
“I’d love to see him competing, to be a true number two fighting for that number one spot, but at this rate I don’t think we will see that,” Cash said.
“It’s clear that it’s a mental thing. He’s done everything he needed to do and wanted to do in his career.”
Six-time Australian Open champion Djokovic double-faulted nine times in an error strewn performance against Istomin.
He denied he had lost intensity since completing the career slam, adding that he “forgot about it” when he began a new season.
“It’s not a time now to go so deep into it. I didn’t reflect on that at all at this stage,” he said.
“It’s just that, it’s one of these days when you don’t feel that great on the court, don’t have much rhythm, and the player you’re playing against is feeling the ball very well.”
Since winning the French Open in June, Djokovic has been knocked out in the first round of the Rio Olympics and lost both his US Open title and his status as world number one.
“It’s not like this technique has fallen off. There’s obviously a big confidence thing, but now he makes mistakes and it is a mental thing,” Cash added.
“Maybe it’s his time to say I’m not quite the same player that I was but I can still perform well.”
| Australian Open 2017 |
|---|
| Venue: Melbourne Park, Melbourne Dates: 16-29 Jan |
| Coverage: Daily live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website; TV highlights on BBC Two and online from 21 January. |
Six-time Australian Open champion Serena Williams reached the third round with a straight-sets win over world number 61 Lucie Safarova on Thursday.
The American, 35, attempting to win an Open Era record 23rd Grand Slam singles title, won 6-3 6-4 in Melbourne.
Czech Safarova, who lost to Williams in the 2015 French Open final, failed to convert any of her six break points.
“I’m really happy to have got through that,” said world number two Williams, who won in one hour and 25 minutes.
“It’s never easy having to play in a second round against someone you have seen in a final. I’ve played two former top-10 opponents, but it’s a great way to start the tournament.”
Williams lost the Australian Open final last year to Angelique Kerber, but went on to win at Wimbledon and equal Steffi Graf’s Open era record of 22 Grand Slam singles titles.
She will continue her bid for the record against 23-year-old Nicole Gibbs, who beat fellow American Irina Falconi 6-4 6-1.
Poland’s world number three Agnieszka Radwanska suffered a surprise second-round exit to Croatia’s Mirjana Lucic-Baroni.
The 27-year-old, who has reached two semi-finals in Melbourne in the past three tournaments, lost 6-3 6-2 to the 34-year-old world number 79.
Fifth-seed Karolina Pliskova beat 18-year-old Russian qualifier Anna Blinkova 6-0 6-2 in 59 minutes, meaning the Czech has dropped just four games en route to the third round.
“I don’t want to say my opponent wasn’t that good, but I was better,” said the 24-year-old, who faces Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko next.
Third seed Milos Raonic reached the third round of the Australian Open for the seventh time with a 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7-4) win over Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller.
The Canadian 26, hit 21 aces as he set up a meeting with France’s Gilles Simon, who reached the quarter-finals in Melbourne in 2009.
“I started feeling a little bit of a cough but I didn’t think much of it, then this morning I felt pretty bad waking up,” he said.
“I came out with the sort of idea of put everything into the match, try to solve it, understand the importance of the mental side of things in that situation.”
World number 15 Grigor Dimitrov also moved into the next round with a 1-6 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory over Korea’s Chung Hye-on.
He will face France’s Richard Gasquet after his 6-1 6-1 6-1 win over Argentine Carlos Berlocq. Former world number three David Ferrer beat American qualifier Ernesto Escobedo 2-6 6-4 6-4 6-2 to set up a tie with Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut.
| Australian Open 2017 |
|---|
| Venue: Melbourne Park, Melbourne Dates: 16-29 Jan |
| Coverage: Daily live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website; TV highlights on BBC Two and online from 21 January. |
Britain’s Jamie Murray and Brazilian partner Bruno Soares have been knocked out in the men’s doubles first round by Sam Querrey and Donald Young.
The defending champions and second seeds lost 6-3 7-6 (7-5) in one hour and 12 minutes on Thursday.
American pair Querrey and Young will face Russians Karen Khachanov and Andrey Kuznetsov in the second round.
Querrey also plays world number one Andy Murray in the men’s singles third round on Friday.
Britain’s Dan Evans was due to play in the doubles alongside Nick Kyrgios against Dusan Lajovic and Viktor Troicki on Thursday, but the Australian has withdrawn because of injury concerns.
Kyrgios said he sustained a knee injury playing basketball several weeks ago.
The 21-year-old lost to Andreas Seppi in the men’ singles on Wednesday, while Evans progressed to the third round after beating world number seven Marin Cilic.
They have been replaced in the draw by Argentines Renzo Olivo and Guido Pella.
Milos Raonic submitted another business-like performance on Friday at the Australian Open, sending Luxembourg’s Gilles Muller home after a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(4) second-round win. The third-seeded Canadian struck 21 aces and limited the big-serving Muller’s count to seven.
Raonic also saved all four break points faced and broke Muller just enough – once in each of the first two sets. The third-seeded Raonic had been 0-2 against Muller in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series, although the two hadn’t played since 2012. Muller also entered the Australian Open off his best result ever: His first ATP World Tour title at the Apia International Sydney last weekend.
But Raonic needed less than two hours to reach the third round, where he’ll face Frenchman Gilles Simon. The 25th seed needed only 96 minutes to beat Brazil’s Rogerio Dutra Silva 6-4, 6-1, 6-1.
Fifteenth seed Grigor Dimitrov recovered from a set deficit to beat #NextGenATP player Hyeon Chung of South Korea 1-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4. Chung, who missed three months last season because of an ab injury, looked fit as he chased balls from side to side, answering everything Dimitrov slapped his way during the first set. Dimitrov hit only three winners to 14 unforced errors in the opener.
Watch Now: Train With Dimitrov, Part One
But the Bulgarian ripped away momentum with a break to start the second set, and improved play followed. Last week’s Brisbane champion won 13/15 net points during the next two sets and broke twice in the fourth set to advance in two hours and 34 minutes.
In the third round, Dimitrov will meet 18th seed Richard Gasquet, who had little trouble beating Argentine Carlos Berlocq 6-1, 6-1, 6-1. The Frenchman has won five of his six FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings against Dimitrov, but Dimitrov won their last meeting, 6-4, 6-4 on the Shanghai Rolex Masters hard courts last October.
Watch Now: Pushing The Limits With Dimitrov, Part Two
Defending champion Novak Djokovic suffered a shock defeat by world number 117 Denis Istomin in the second round of the Australian Open.
The six-time winner struggled for consistency and lost 7-6 5-7 2-6 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 in four hours and 48 minutes.
It is the first time Djokovic, 29, has lost in the second round of a Grand Slam since 2008 at Wimbledon.
The result leaves world number one Andy Murray as the favourite to secure the title for the first time in Melbourne.
Uzbek Istomin will next face Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta, who beat Britain’s Kyle Edmund on Thursday.
It is only the second time in seven years that Djokovic has lost to a player ranked outside the top 100 – his defeat by Juan Martin del Potro, ranked 145th, at the Rio Olympics in 2016 the other occasion.
Djokovic, who has beaten Andy Murray in four of the Briton’s five final defeats in Melbourne, could not find his rhythm, losing his first service game in 15 minutes and he went on to lose the first set in one hour and 25 minutes.
He won four consecutive games in the third set as his opponent faltered but Istomin came back in the fourth set to take it to a tie break.
Both players served aggressively as they received vocal support from the crowd, with Istomin taking the match to a deciding set with a brutal ace.
Istomin, who broke in game five, remained strong on his own serve and raised his arms to the crowd after Djokovic sliced his final shot into the net.
Find out how to get into tennis in our special guide.
Daniel Evans, No. 51 in the Emirates ATP Rankings, needed some tennis clothes before playing in his next tournament, the Australian Open.
His contract with his previous clothing supplier, Nike, had ended last December. So Evans, much like a recreational tennis player or even a beginner would do, visited a clothing store – in his case, Uniqlo – and picked up some clothes for his matches.
“I just went to the store and bought a load of clothes the other day, plain clothes,” Evans said on Wednesday when asked about his fashion. The Brit had just beaten seventh seed Marin Cilic in the second round in Melbourne for the biggest win of his career.
The shirts cost him $19.99, Evans said. He didn’t recall how much the shorts were. “I didn’t look. I just picked the shorts up. I was more worried about the shirts,” he said.
Evans bought 18 shirts this past weekend and returned to buy some more on Wednesday before his match against Cilic. He doesn’t think he’ll have to run that errand again, though.
“No, I only wore one shirt today,” he said on Wednesday. “I’m good till Friday. We’re good.”
Evans’ tennis has also been very good. The 26-year-old Brit matched his best Grand Slam result by beating Cilic and advancing to the third round Down Under.
Before this week, the Birmingham native had never won a match at the season’s first Grand Slam. Last year, during his debut as a qualifier, Evans fell to Spaniard Feliciano Lopez in straight sets.
“It was really good,” said Evans, who faces Aussie Bernard Tomic in the third round. “I think I played as well as I can play today. I was really pleased with how I played especially towards the end of the match… Definitely the biggest win.”
| Australian Open 2017 |
|---|
| Venue: Melbourne Park, Melbourne Dates: 16-29 Jan |
| Coverage: Daily live commentary on BBC Radio 5 live sports extra; live text on selected matches on the BBC Sport website. |
Johanna Konta made it three British players through to the third round of the Australian Open with an assured 6-3 6-2 victory over Japan’s Naomi Osaka.
The 25-year-old ninth seed produced a confident all-round display to see off the promising 19-year-old.
She follows Andy Murray and Dan Evans in making the last 32 and could be joined there by Heather Watson, who plays Jennifer Brady on Thursday.
But Kyle Edmund was beaten 6-2 6-4 6-2 by Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta.
The British number two produced an impressive victory to reach the second round but was unable to maintain that form against the 30th seed.
Edmund, 22, made too many errors and could not match the power and accuracy of his opponent’s serve, as he lost in an hour and 46 minutes.
Konta, who will face Denmark’s 17th seed Caroline Wozniacki on Saturday, faced an opponent rated one of the most talented players in the women’s game.
The big-serving Osaka, ranked 48th, had a chance to break Konta in the eighth game but missed a forehand and then looked on helplessly as the Briton fired down two aces to hold serve.
Konta took advantage of her opponent’s loss of focus to break to love and then served out the opening set in clinical fashion.
The Briton dominated the second set to secure her 10th win of 2017.
“I love playing on these amazing courts and I’m looking forward to staying here as long as possible,” she said.
Former Fed Cup coach Judy Murray on Radio 5 live sports extra
Johanna Konta is looking every bit the contender. She has one of the best serves in the women’s game, moves well, defends much better and plays well off both sides.
She looks confident, determined and focused. She has a strong team in her corner and is in a very good position to go far in this competition.
Edmund started by winning the first game of the match on serve but proceeded to lose the next five.
At 5-2 the 22-year-old called the trainer for treatment on his left foot, but it did not affect the momentum of the match as he netted a forehand on set point in the next game.
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Edmund had his first break point in the second game of the second set, but failed to take it, and then he double-faulted to hand Carreno Busta a break in the seventh game.
Edmund had a couple of chances to level the set in the 10th game, but Carreno Busta produced two big serves and eventually took the set after surviving two further break points.
Two unforced errors and a double fault handed the Spaniard a break in the fifth game of the third set and the contest was effectively over when Carreno Busta got a second break two games later.
Third seeds Bob Bryan and Mike Bryan made a speedy start at the Australian Open on Wednesday as the men’s doubles draw action kicked off. The six-time champions did not face a break point to beat the all-French duo of Paul-Henri Mathieu and Benoit Paire 6-3, 6-0 in 43 minutes.
Fourth seeds and reigning ATP Finals champions Henri Kontinen and John Peers fired seven aces to defeat Santiago Gonzalez and David Marrero 7-6(1), 6-4. They next face Marcos Baghdatis and Gilles Muller, 6-1, 6-4 winners over Cheng-Peng Hsieh and Tsung-Hua Yang.
Fifth seeds Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez advanced to the second round with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 victory over Alexandr Dolgopolov and Gerald Melzer, while No. 9 seeds Ivan Dodig and Marcel Granollers, a new team for 2017, won 6-3, 6-4 over Malek Jaziri and Stephane Robert. Dodig/Granollers next play Robert Lindstedt and Michael Venus, 7-6(6), 7-6(2) winners over Andre Begemann and Jan-Lennard Struff.
Other seeds to advance to the second round: No. 11 seeds Jean-Julien Rojer and Horia Tecau defeated Philipp Petzschner and Mikhail Youzhny 7-6(5), 7-6(3), fifteenth seeds Rohan Bopanna and Pablo Cuevas beat Thomaz Bellucci and Maximo Gonzalez 6-4, 7-6(4) and Dominic Inglot and Florin Mergea, the No. 16 seeds, advanced 6-2, 7-5 over home hopes Luke Saville and Jordan Thompson.
Aussies Matthew Barton and Matthew Ebden scored an upset in front of their home crowd, a 6-2, 6-4 win over No. 12 seeds Vasek Pospisil and Radek Stepanek.