Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, Monaco

[1] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs. [55] Jiri Vesely (CZE)

Vesely scored the biggest victory of his career today when he upset the reigning champion and number one ranked player in three sets.  Vesely defeated Djokovic 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. Vesely has been struggling to find his top form and probably no one expected him to give Djokovic much of a challenge, much less beat him. Vesely’s run of firs t and second round losses date back to April 2015.  During that time he had a few third round appearances but never went any further in a tournament.  In his first meeting against Djokovic, he probably was not very confident about his chances of coming out victorious. Yet, he also thought that he had a better chance today given his semifinal appearance in Morocco earlier this month.

I have never seen Djokovic play so consistently poorly for an entire match.  He has had some shaky moments lately; however, for the most part he was able to find a solution and come away with the victory.  Today, he was not able to manufacture an escape from the persistent top quality play of Vesely.  When I expected Vesely to fold under the pressure he stood firm, instead it was Djokovic who lost his way.  It was a surprise to watch him struggle mentally to find his game the entire match.  There were errors coming from everywhere.  His serve and overhead were off, his backhand let him down at a few crucial moments, and his forehand was shaky at best.  He was able to execute a few brilliant drop shots but not enough to hurt Vesely.  Was his vision the issue or was Djokovic struggling to deal with the pressure of expectation?