Novak Djokovic believes the water bottle incident may have contributed to his surprise defeat

September 12, 2021; Flushing, NY, USA; Novak Djokovic of Serbia is introduced before competing against Daniil Medvedev of Russia in the men’s singles final on day fourteen of the 2021 US Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center. Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

Novak Djokovic suffered an unfortunate injury after winning his second-round match at the Italian Open this week and he believes Sunday’s incident may have had a negative impact on him.

Djokovic defeated qualifier Corentin Moutet 6-3, 6-1 in his second-round match in Rome on Friday. After the game, Djokovic stopped on the way to the locker room tunnel to sign autographs. As he was getting up to sign autographs, he was hit in the head with a metal water bottle.

A video showed that the water bottle fell out of a fan’s backpack and accidentally landed on Djokovic. Although Djokovic was clearly in pain and bleeding from his head, he later posted a message on social media saying he was “fine.”

On Sunday, Djokovic was the victim of a surprise. The world number 1 lost 2:6, 3:6 against Alejandro Tabilo, who is ranked 32nd in the world. After the match, Djokovic was asked if the water bottle incident was a reason for his defeat. He didn’t rule it out.

“I don’t know, to be honest. I have to check this. The training was different. Yesterday I wanted to do a light workout. I didn’t feel anything, but I didn’t feel the same either,” Djokovic said. “It was pretty bad today under a lot of pressure – not in terms of the pain, but in terms of the balance. Just no coordination. Completely different player than two nights ago. Could be. I don’t know. I need to do medical tests and see what’s going on.”

Djokovic called the incident an “unfortunate situation” and admitted he had a headache on Friday evening. He said he felt “pretty good” on Saturday and therefore expects he will have no problems in the game against Tabilo.

The 36-year-old Djokovic will now prepare for the French Open after his unexpectedly early exit in Rome. He wants to extend his record of 24 major championships.