Novak Djokovic suffered a major upset at the hands of Alexei Popyrin with a 6-4 6-4 2-6 6-4 beating in the third round of the US Open on Friday to end the Serbian’s bid for a 25th Grand Slam title.
Defending champion Djokovic, who had to dig deep to win the Olympic gold medal earlier this month, looked sluggish against the energised Popyrin, who notched the biggest win of his career to reach the round of 16 of a major tournament for the first time.
Djokovic had five break point opportunities in the opening set but failed to convert any of them, while Popyrin broke serve on his first chance for a 5-4 lead and then grabbed the first set.
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Popyrin broke again in the second when Djokovic’s forehand volley landed wide for a 3-2 advantage. He took control of the match with a perfectly executed serve and volley to capture the second set.
The second-seeded Djokovic showed some life in the third, when he broke serve with a forehand that Popyrin could not handle and took the set to claw his way back into the match.
But the comeback proved short-lived, with Popyrin letting out a mighty roar when he crushed a ferocious forehand winner for a break of serve and 3-2 lead in the fourth. He completed the upset when Djokovic’s forehand sailed long on match point.