Pesaro native Luca Nardi despatched Novak Djokovic in three sets at Indian Wells.
Novak Djokovic has been ousted from the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells by the “lucky loser” Luca Nardi. Nardi had reached the main draw of the tournament as a ‘lucky loser’ thanks to a withdrawal after being defeated by Belgium’s David Goffin in the last round of qualifying.
Nardi, 20, secured a spot in the last-16 round, set to face American Tommy Paul, after defeating the world No 1 with a score of 6-4, 3-6, 6-3. The Italian, currently ranked 123rd globally, becomes the lowest-ranked player to triumph over Djokovic at ATP Masters 1000 or Grand Slam level.
“I don’t know [how I held my nerve],” he remarked. “I think it is a miracle, because I am a 20-year-old guy, 100 in the world, and beating Novak. It’s crazy.”
Clinching victory with his sixth ace, Nardi unleashed 16 winners in the final set compared to Djokovic’s mere two, despite the latter being a five-time Indian Wells champion.
“It’s fine. You know, it’s part of the sport,” Djokovic reflected. “You just have to accept it. Some you win; some you lose. Hopefully I’ll win some more and still keep going. I guess every trophy that eventually comes my way is going to be great. Obviously to break the kind of negative cycle a little bit I’m having in the last three, four tournaments where I haven’t really been close to my best.”
