No. 28 seed Alexei Popyrin upset world No. 2 Novak Djokovic, 6-4, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4, in the third round of the 2024 US Open. The 25-year-old earned a ticket to his first round of 16 in a Grand Slam and a date with American star Frances Tiafoe on Sunday.
Prior to Friday, Popyrin held a 87-106 record and had never beaten a top-five opponent in a major tournament. It was a shocking result, especially considering the night before had an even bigger upset with world No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz losing to unseeded Botic van de Zandschulp in straight sets.
“It’s unbelievable because I’ve been in the third round about 15 times in my career, but I haven’t been able to get past to the fourth round,” Popyrin said. “And to be able to do it against the greatest of all time to get into the fourth round, it’s unbelievable. It’s a great feeling and the hard work has paid off.”
This marked Djokovic’s first loss in the third round of the US Open since 2006 against Lleyton Hewitt — who was at Arthur Ashe Stadium to witness Popyrin’s win.
Djokovic won three out of four major titles last season, but this year will end without a single title. The last time one of the Big 3 — Djokovic, Rodger Federer and Rafael Nadal — did not win a Grand Slam in a calendar year was 2002. However, Djokovic has still been playing at a high level and even accomplished a career Golden Slam with his Olympic gold medal at the Paris Games earlier this summer.
“Congratulations to him and his team,” said Djokovic, who did not cite any physical issues. “He definitely played better and deserved to win it today. On my end, honestly the way I felt and the way I played from the beginning of this tournament, third round is a success. I’ve played some of the worst tennis I’ve ever played, honestly, serving by far the worst ever.”
Popyrin took control of the match right away, while Djokovic was putting up an uncharacteristically high number of double faults. The veteran — who later said he just felt “out of gas” since the start of the tournament — didn’t look like his usual dominant self, but he found a better rhythm in the third set while Popyrin started making more unforced errors.
Djokovic went up 4-2 in the third set and got love from the crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium. He went on to win the next two games and force a fourth set. Even Popyrin’s countryman Nick Kyrgios hadn’t lost confidence in Djokovic’s abilities yet.
Djokovic won the first game of the fourth set, but Popyrin wasn’t about to let this slip out of his hands. He tied it at 1-1, and the rest of the set stayed highly competitive.
A double fault by Djokovic gave Popyrin the advantage when they were tied 2-2. Djokovic continued struggling with his serve and got hit by a time violation. Popyrin screamed when he got the 3-2 lead, and then again when he extended his lead with an ace.
Djokovic had the advantage while trying to win the next game, but he gave it up with yet another double fault. He got the advantage once more, but gave the point away again. Djokovic registered a total of 14 double faults on Friday, which was the most ever for him in a major event. His previous high was 12 during the opening round of Wimbledon back in 2010.
