Tabilo gives the key to toppling (again) Djokovic: "I entered the court very relaxed"

Two matches against Novak Djokovic. One in Rome 2024 and another in Monte Carlo 2025. Two victories in straight sets, in fact, in the first one he lost five games and today he lost seven. This feat by Alejandro Tabilo against the best player of all time cannot be a coincidence. Undoubtedly, one of those stories he will be able to tell for the rest of his life, although now it's time to sit down and reflect on and explain what the secret is to this dominance over the Serbian tennis player. At the Tennis Channel table, we could hear the Chilean recounting in a couple of paragraphs what he felt this Wednesday in another one of those triumphs he will never forget.

"As everyone has seen, I tried to take advantage of my condition on the court, playing without any pressure before stepping onto the court. I had talked a lot with my coach about this match, we both know what I am capable of when I compete well. Additionally, we already had the precedent of having beaten him once on clay, so I suppose that made me enter more relaxed. Mentally, I would say the idea of not this being the first time I could beat him helped a lot, although, well, at some point you always feel that small pressure of being close to defeating a guy like Novak," commented the current world No. 32.

In all this, Tabilo's season couldn't be more disastrous. When he landed in Monte Carlo, his 2025 journey unfolded as follows: nine tournaments played, only two victories. Those two victories, one in Indian Wells and the other in Miami, by no means indicated that he could arrive in the Principality and, right from the start, defeat two former champions of the tournament in the first two rounds. First, Stan Wawrinka (1-6, 75, 7-5) and today Novak Djokovic (6-3, 6-4). This is how unpredictable tennis is; some already see him lifting the champion's title.

THE CHALLENGE OF BEATING NOVAK AGAIN

The thing is, no matter how much we remembered that victory over Djokovic last year in Rome, it is normal that when you face a legend once, no matter which way the scale tips, the norm is to think that luck influenced more than any other factor. They will talk about how the favorite was not in good form, made many mistakes, was injured, or that you had a day of maximum inspiration. Tabilo is indifferent to all these things because beating Novak Djokovic is beating Novak Djokovic, always, regardless of the context. And this was precisely what helped him repeat the feat once again, following the same pattern that twelve months ago placed him on the front pages.

"Of course, it's intimidating; we're talking about Novak Djokovic, everyone knows how good he is in every aspect, especially mentally," acknowledges the South American when asked about the nerves of facing the greatest of all time. "I felt ready to step onto the court and face the challenge; I was going to go out and give it my all no matter what. I was fortunate to start the match very solid, but at the same time, I was also very aggressive. I tried to maintain this approach throughout the match, or at least most of the time, until gradually everything started to work. I noticed that I was making him feel uncomfortable at times, so I am happy to have risen to the occasion in those moments," concluded Alejandro, who will be in the round of 16.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Tabilo da la clave para tumbar (otra vez) a Djokovic: “Entré a pista muy relajado”