Internazionali BNL d’Italia top seed Novak Djokovic suffered a quarter-final 6-2, 5-7, 4-6 loss to Tomas Berdych (6) at the Foro Italico on Friday.
Match lasted two hours and 22 minutes.
Novak started well. He took the opening set 6-2 with a double break.
Nole broke his opponent’s serve in the sixth game of the second set, and was serving for the match at 5-3, but Berdych broke back and consolidated it for 5-5. Djokovic was broken once again in the 11th game, and the Czech served out the set to level the match at one-set all.
“I lost concentration and started playing more defensively,” said Novak. “I played a bad game at 5-3 and I made some unforced errors. At this level you have to take advantage of the opportunities and I lost this game by myself.”
A single break in game three of the deciding final set was enough for Berdych to seal the victory and book his place in the last four.
Match statistics: aces (8-9), double faults (1-3), winners (38-45), unforced errors (24-36), total points won (97-99).
Novak’s next tournament is the second Grand Slam of the season, the 2013 Roland Garros, taking place in Paris from May 26 to June 9.
Last year, Nole reached the finals for the first time (l.to Nadal 4-6, 3-6, 6-2, 5-7).
“I need to make sure that I don’t have highs and lows. I’m sure that I will be ready for Paris,” Novak added.
Photo: Getty Images
