Adriano Panatta: A Blunt Prediction About Jannik Sinner and Novak Djokovic

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Speaking on “Domenica Sportiva,” Adriano Panatta discussed Novak Djokovic and the possibility of him retiring from the tour after more than twenty years at the highest level. “It’s his problem; he has to decide for himself. He’s still making it to the semifinals at Grand Slams; I quit when I started losing consistently in the second or third round.”

According to the former Italian tennis player, it could be Jannik Sinner himself who brings Djokovic’s career to an end: “McEnroe forced Borg to retire, and Becker forced McEnroe to retire. I said two or three years ago that Sinner would force Djokovic to retire, but he still hasn’t.”

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The Belgrade champion suffered a crushing defeat against Navone in the first round of the U.S. Open: he hadn’t lost in the first round of a Grand Slam in over twenty years, and the end of an era truly seems near. The former world No. 1 was eliminated in the first round after a 4-hour, 36-minute battle that ended with a score of 7-6(5), 5-7, 4-6, 6-2, 6

The 39-year-old Serb, speaking in the mixed zone at Arthur Ashe Stadium, made no secret of his ordeal: “I think it was obvious that I felt terrible on the court. It’s something that, unfortunately, I’ve been dealing with in practically every match this year. Vomiting, retching—it’s a real problem in that regard. Then my whole body starts to give out, with cramps and pain everywhere. In the end, my back gave out, as did my shoulder, and I wasn’t able to finish the match.”  Djokovic also added: “Obviously, I’m very proud of everything I’ve achieved in the past, but today is today. Right now, I’m just trying to figure out what’s really going on and how far I can go under these conditions.”

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