Novak Djokovic Stunned in First Round of US Open by Mariano Navone

NEW YORK — Arthur Ashe Stadium has seen Novak Djokovic at his ruthless, untouchable best. On Monday night, it watched something very different: the greatest Grand Slam winner in men’s tennis stumbling, staggering, and finally bowing out in the first round of the US Open.

At 39, chasing that almost mythical 25th major, Djokovic walked into the arena with history at his back and expectation on his shoulders. He walked out beaten, 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, by Argentina’s Mariano Navone, ranked No. 49 in the world and making his own kind of history.

The shock runs deep. This is Djokovic’s first opening-round exit at a Grand Slam since the 2006 Australian Open. His first defeat in the first two rounds at the US Open after 37 straight wins. A 78-match first-round Grand Slam winning streak, gone in four hours and 36 minutes.

And it ended with a whimper: a weak Djokovic return floating short, Navone pouncing, and the four-time US Open champion frozen, unable to chase it down.

A giant looks small

For half an hour, it felt like the script would be familiar. Djokovic raced to 3-0, then 4-1 in the opening set, dictating rallies, gliding into position, the kind of start that usually signals a routine night for him on Ashe.

Then the energy drained out of him.

He slowed between points, trudging to his chair. He took pills. He looked listless, at times almost detached. The unforced errors came in waves, loose backhands, misjudged forehands, returns that barely made the net. Navone broke him twice to haul back to 4-4, then cracked an ace to level the set on his own terms.

The tiebreak swung on Djokovic’s racket — and failed there too. Another error into the net handed Navone the opener and a foothold in a match that suddenly felt nothing like a formality.

Across the net, the 23-year-old Argentine, one of 11 men from his country in the draw, embraced the chaos. He chased everything, extended rallies, refused to be intimidated by the banners, the crowd, or the name.

“(It) was very tough for me because you are playing with the ‘GOAT’ on this court,” Navone said on court afterward. “For sure it’s the best thing I’ve had on court. This is an amazing court and the biggest stage. It’s amazing, the way we play. I mean, five sets. … I’m very happy. I don’t know. What can I say?"

Djokovic fights, then fades

The second set turned into a grind. Ten straight games without a break, both men digging in. Then Djokovic finally snapped the tension, ripping through eight consecutive points to steal the set and level the match. It looked like the old pattern: early scare, then the champion tightens the screws.

He edged the third set too, again finding a late surge, claiming the final two games and lifting his arms, urging the Ashe crowd to rise with him. The noise grew. The belief, for a moment, returned.

But the cost of those rallies was written on his body.

Navone made him work for every inch, dragging points past 20 shots again and again, forcing Djokovic to bend and twist and sprint in the humid New York night. Djokovic finished with 70 unforced errors, an avalanche of mistakes by his standards, yet Navone only converted six of his 17 break chances. The Argentine left opportunities on the table, but he never left the fight.

The turning point came in the fourth set. Djokovic, who said he had been struggling physically from the fourth game of the match, began to unravel. Navone earned a crucial break, seized control of the baseline, and suddenly the rallies that Djokovic usually owns belonged to the underdog.

From there, the match turned into a physical ordeal for the Serb.

A body that won’t cooperate

Djokovic vomited during the third set, a grim echo of his second-round loss to Thiago Agustin Tirante in Cincinnati earlier this month, when he dealt with similar issues. On Ashe, the pattern repeated — only this time, there was no escape.

"I think it was obvious that it was an awful feeling on the court for me. It's something that I've been carrying, unfortunately, pretty much every match this year," Djokovic said afterward. "You know, vomiting, throwing up, a serious issue there. Then my whole body, you know, starts to collapse, basically cramping and pain. Yeah, the back just gave up in the end and shoulder, and I couldn't close it out, you know?

"I was a break up in the fourth, but just struggled all the way since the fourth game of the match. Again, I don't want to take too much out of his win. Congrats to him. He's a nice guy, a fighter. But, you know, I didn't enjoy myself."

By the fifth set, the contest had tilted entirely. Navone surged, Djokovic’s movement shrank, and the scoreline — 6-1 in the decider — reflected a match in which one man’s belief and legs grew stronger while the other’s deserted him.

A new name on a big stage

For Navone, this is not just the biggest win of his career. It is the kind of night that can alter a trajectory.

In 2024, he had already carved out a small slice of history, becoming the first man in the Open Era to be seeded in his Grand Slam main draw debut at the French Open. Now he owns something even more precious: a five-set victory over Djokovic on Arthur Ashe, the kind of result that follows a player for the rest of his career.

Next, he faces the winner of Matteo Berrettini vs. Stan Wawrinka in the second round on Sept. 2. A seasoned finalist or a three-time major champion will be waiting.

Djokovic, meanwhile, leaves New York with more questions than answers. The chase for 25 continues, but the image of him bent over, sick, his body rebelling on the court where he once ruled, lingers.

For the first time in a long time at a major, the story of the fortnight will unfold without him.