Djokovic accepts his defeat: "I played without pain, there are no excuses possible"

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Since the Monte Carlo Masters 1000, when he lost to Alejandro Davidovich, we haven't seen Novak Djokovic leaving a tournament without a victory. Three years of reliability in debut matches came to an end this Tuesday at the ATP 500 in Doha, where he was surprised by Matteo Berrettini. Of course, as you know how this works, no defeat of a sports legend is accepted by the press without adding an asterisk next to it. What if he was injured? What if he wasn't fully recovered yet? Was it more his fault or his opponent's merit? The Balkan responded to all this in the press conference, always elegant on days when the wind doesn't blow in his favor.

“I haven't had any pain or discomfort during the match, none of that. Today, I was simply outplayed by a better player, that's all,” the Belgrade native stated before the journalists jumped to another headline. “I know I wasn't at the desired level, maybe I'm still not moving the way I want to, but what I want to make clear is that I played without any pain, so there's no excuse. Matteo was a better player than me; I think he played a masterful match, to be honest. Tactically, he was great, and he served very well throughout the match. I believe it was a well-deserved victory on his part,” analyzed the World No. 7 after suffering his second stumble of the season.

THERE WON'T BE A REVOLUTION IN HIS GAME

Knowing that he does not plan to ask for a wildcard for Dubai next week and therefore his next tournament will be the Indian Wells Masters 1000, questions were also directed towards his coach, Andy Murray. Speculation has arisen about a change in his tennis, in his style, even in his way of understanding the game. Obviously, ideas that make no sense. Starting because with that style, he has become the greatest champion of all time and ending with the fact that Murray, precisely, competed throughout his career following the same patterns. Yes, maybe at 37 years old it's a good time to reinvent oneself and modify some aspects, although for now, the Balkan shows strength defending his usual parameters.

“I'm trying to improve my game, I guess like the rest of the players. However, I know that my tennis won't change drastically, it won't happen overnight. What I mean is that I'm not going to start playing serve and volley, maybe I'll do it occasionally, but my game is what it is and you all know it, the core will remain the same. I will try to adjust some details depending on the surface I play on and so on. Of course, there will be injuries; things are not like they were 10-15 years ago, so I try to take care of my body daily. I still try to give my best, no matter the circumstances,” he stated in remarks collected by ATP.

This news is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Djokovic acepta su derrota: “He jugado sin dolor, no hay excusa posible”