Dino Prizmic, over two years on since his last meeting with Novak Djokovic, has finally beaten his idol.
And, it has come on one of the sport’s biggest stages, with the Croatian coming from a set down to stun the former world number one in Rome.
It was a result that nobody expected, although many did highlight it as a tricky return to tennis for the Serbian after his two-month absence.
It seems that even Prizmic himself did not really believe that such a triumph was possible, and he carried that disbelief into his post-match press conference too.
Dino Prizmic reacts after beating Novak Djokovic at the Italian Open
Upon entering the media room, he instantly gave a short and shocked summary of his win: “Yeah, it was big moment for me. It was also big thing to share the court with a legend. So yeah today, I mean, I played unbelievable. I’m very happy about my performance today.”
Asked to compare the current-day Novak Djokovic to the one he played and lost to at the 2024 Australian Open, Prizmic added: “Now he didn’t play for a while, so it was easier. But again, it was for me very hard. Especially first set he played unbelievable. I just tried to stay in the match and tried to stay focused. In the end it was good.”
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Novak Djokovic lost to Dino Prizmic in his opening match…
Djokovic rated his own level after the match in his own press conference, whilst Prizmic concluded his by trying to sum up his emotions after beating his idol.
He added: “Yeah, now feeling is amazing. But yeah, in two days I have another match, so I just need to recover as much as I can for the next match and also to play as much as I can my best tennis. Try to play, yeah, that’s it.”
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Following this early exit from the Italian Open, Djokovic is staring down the possibility of heading to Roland Garros without having won a single clay-court match all season.
It is hardly sparkling preparation for the second Grand Slam of the season.
Alas, in his press conference, Djokovic confirmed his plans ahead of the French Open, stating that he would play no more events beforehand and thus opting against defending his Geneva Open title in favour of further recovery.
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These are worrying signs for Djokovic, who obviously boasts the experience on this surface that is needed to succeed.
However, with barely any matchplay on the dirt, or any surface at all this season, it’s hard to see him seamlessly transitioning to Roland Garros, which is renowned as one of the most physically demanding events of the campaign.
