After Novak Djokovic’s unexpected decision to play at the Monte Carlo Masters was backed up by a poor performance and a defeat in his opening match, the idea that he may ‘have a problem’ was floated.
Former top ten star Arnaud Clement voiced his concerns after Djokovic’s flat performance as he lost against Chile’s world No 32 Alejandro Tabilo in his one and only match at this year’s Monte Carlo Masters.
Djokovic described his straight sets defeat against Tabilo as ‘horrible’ and Clement pondered why the Serbian agreed to play in the first ATP 1000 Masters event of the season just a few days after his draining run to the final of the Miami Open.
“The shock, ultimately, is more the manner and the attitude than the elimination itself,” Clement told Eurosport France.
“It’s true that we didn’t feel he was happy on the court, we didn’t feel he was fulfilled. Did he want to? We don’t know. Did he have a problem? We don’t know. But there was certainly something wrong with Novak Djokovic.
“And it wasn’t simply the fact that his tennis wasn’t in place. He didn’t give the impression, as can often be the case with him when things aren’t going well, of finding solutions and resources.”
He was criticised last year for playing a part-time schedule on the ATP Tour, with many experienced observers suggesting Djokovic would struggle to add to his haul of Grand Slam titles if he only played a handful of tournaments a year.
His response to that criticism was pretty clear, as he insisted spending time with his wife and two children was more important to him than playing in ATP Tour events he no longer had the motivation to compete in.
Time away from his home appeared to be a non-negotiable condition for Djokovic to continue his career a year ago, but he has played in far more tournaments this year and spent long periods away from his wife Jelena and their two children.
Novak Djokovic’s family
Novak Djokovic’s family: Daughter Tara, wife Jelena and son Stefan
His appearance at the Qatar Open in February was a surprise a few weeks after he pulled out of the Australian Open with an injury problem and then he spent almost a month in America, playing at the Indian Wells Masters and then appearing at the Miami Open for the first time since 2019.
Taking time off after that long run away from home may have been understandable, but Djokovic appears to be ready to devote more of his time to playing tennis in 2025 and he confirmed as much by getting straight back on court in Monte Carlo.
“It was actually more like the worst day. Look, I was hoping this is not going to happen, but it was quite a high probability I’m going to play this way,” said a downbeat Djokovic.
“I don’t know, just horrible. Horrible feeling to play this way and I’m just sorry for all the people that have to witness this.
“I expected myself at least to have put in a decent performance. Not like this, I mean this is horrible.
“I did not have high expectations, really. I knew I’m gonna have a tough opponent, and I knew I’m gonna probably play pretty bad. But this bad… I didn’t expect.”
Presumably, Djokovic will now have a chance to cram in some valuable time with his children before he returns to court and the next big test of his new approach will be revealed later this month in Madrid.
This has often been the clay court Masters 1000 tournament Djokovic has skipped in recent years and he has only played in Madrid once since 2019.
If he does show up for a tournament played at altitude in conditions he admits do not always suit him, it will be clear that he is putting his tennis first as he chases a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title before he calls time on his career.
